


why'd it take so long (to see the light)?

by callistawolf



Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Christmas Fluff, Eventual Smut, F/M, Oral Sex, Past Laurel Lance/Oliver Queen, Thea Queen & Felicity Smoak Friendship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-22
Updated: 2016-01-27
Packaged: 2018-05-15 13:46:01
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 25,903
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5787463
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/callistawolf/pseuds/callistawolf
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Alternate Universe - After a nasty breakup with his longtime girlfriend, Oliver returns home to spend Christmas with his family for the first time in five years. The last thing he expects is to be attracted to his sister's friend. For Felicity, she spent six years trying to get over the crush she had on her best friend's hunky but terminally clueless older brother. She did a great job of it, until she runs into him at the Queen family home. In her words? "Oh, frack."</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So this is a silly, fluffy (and ultimately SMUTTY) thing I started writing a couple weeks ago. Despite Christmas being over, I felt strongly compelled to set it at Christmas time. I hoped to post it before Arrow came back from hiatus but... no such luck. But here we are... maybe we can use the fluff infusion better now anyhow. 
> 
> No, this isn't the Sons of Anarchy AU I want to write (having trouble getting that one going). But I can't apologize too much because I just had so much fun writing this. It's unbeta'd so I apologize for any mistakes but I truly hate editing and I wanted this posted before FEBRUARY. LOL!

Oliver parked his rental car at the back of the drive leading to his parents mansion. The snow, which had begun falling shortly after his flight from San Francisco landed, was now falling even more steadily, coating everything around him. A few cars were crowded up around the portico shielding the front door of the home and he knew one of them would surely belong to his sister. He smiled as he got out of the sedan, snowflakes swirling as he moved to the trunk to retrieve his bags. He couldn’t wait to see her.

Everything was quiet, and it wasn’t just the snow falling that was dampening all noise. It was still early yet, just before 8am on Christmas Eve. Everyone was likely still asleep and only his mother knew he was coming anyhow. 

Flying home for Christmas hadn’t been Oliver’s plan. He’d thought he and his long-time girlfriend, Laurel, would be spending a quiet holiday together before jetting off to Tahiti to ring in the New Year surrounded by sand, sun and sex. 

Over the last few days, those plans had fallen spectacularly apart. He needed to get away from Laurel and coming home had been the first solution that’d come to his mind. 

Oliver crunched through the gathering snow as he headed towards the door, his bags in tow. The carry on contained presents for his family. He’d sent gift cards ahead of time, he always did, but since he was going to be here this year, he’d bought some gifts at the airport gift shop while waiting for his flight to take off. 

A lush wreath hung from the door and he knocked softly and hoped someone would be awake to answer it. He didn’t want to have to dig his old house key out from the bottom of his bag. His wish was answered a moment later when the door swung open to reveal their Russian-born housekeeper, Raisa, standing on the threshold. 

“Mr. Oliver!” she exclaimed, her warm dark eyes lighting up. “No one told me you would be here today!”

Oliver grinned, stepping inside when she moved to let him in. He dropped his bags and then enveloped the older women in a warm hug.“Its good to see you, Raisa. Merry Christmas.”

“Merry Christmas to you too, Mr. Oliver.This is a very nice surprise.” Raisa released him and smiled, before looking him up and down critically. “You’re too skinny.”

She closed the door as he chuckled, leaning down to pick up his bags again. “You always say that.”

“It’s always true.I haven’t had a chance to change the sheets in your room, but it’s waiting for you regardless. As always.”

“You’re the best, Raisa.”

She waved him off, blushing a little.

“Is anyone else awake yet?”

“Your mother is in the kitchen, having her coffee.”

“Great. I’ll go put my bags down and then join her.”

The grin stayed on his face as he crossed the enormous foyer, decked out festively in boughs of evergreen and twinkle lights, to the staircase.His room was the third door on the right and he pushed inside, grinning again when he saw that Raisa was right; the room was just as he’d left it. The dark wood paneling, the thick cream carpeting, the enormous four-poster bed, the blue sofa and stone fireplace, even the desk and everything on top of it was exactly the same. 

Oliver hadn’t lived in the mansion for five years, not since his last ditch effort at college had finally resulted in a business degree from Starling University. That was when he’d left town with Laurel, followed her to San Francisco where she was attending law school and later, accepted a prestigious position at a high powered law firm. There was a small Queen Consolidated office down the peninsula and it hadn’t been difficult for him to persuade his father to let him work there. After a few years of proving himself as a capable businessman, he’d been handed the reins. 

This room— with all its opulence— felt like slipping into a comfortable pair of sweats. It reminded him of simpler times.When he’d lived here, parties and girls were his top priorities. He’d been a fool back then, that much was true. But at least he hadn’t had his heart broken. He hadn’t wasted five years with someone he expected to marry only to be told she’d never loved him in the first place. 

Gritting his jaw, Oliver deposited his bags near the walk in closet. No, he was here to get away from all of… _that_. He wasn’t going to let those thoughts ruin his holiday. 

After a quick stop in the en suite bathroom to freshen up, Oliver headed down to the kitchen to find his mother. She was sitting at the small table near the windows overlooking the expansive yard beyond.Snowflakes drifted, thick, fat and lazy, creating a charming winter landscape. Moira Queen was looking out at the snowfall, dressed in a simple blouse and slacks, and cradling a mug of coffee. 

“Hi, Mom,” he said, after watching her for a moment. 

She started a little before turning to him, a smile spread across her lips. “Oliver!” 

She set her mug down on the table before getting up and he met her in a warm embrace. Her hands cupped the back of his head and she turned her face into his shoulder, breathing him in.He did the same, enveloped in the familiar scent of his mother’s perfume. 

After a moment she relaxed her hold and held him at arm’s length so she could get a good look at him. “I’m so happy you decided to come home this year.”

“I am too, Mom,” Oliver told her, finding he meant it. 

“You still haven’t told me why. I thought you and Laurel were going to Tahiti next week?” 

He shrugged and looked away. He wasn’t ready to talk about what happened just yet. “I will.But first… is there any more of that coffee?”

His mother released him and pointed out the coffee maker. “And you know where the mugs are. Help yourself and join me. This snowfall is beautiful this morning.”

A few minutes later, Oliver sat across from her and sipped at the strong, flavorful coffee. He sighed in contentment. He’d forgotten how much he loved his parents’ coffee. They made it exactly the way he liked it. He’d allowed Laurel to have her preference the last few years they’d been together and he’d nearly forgotten just how enjoyable a good cup of coffee could be. 

“Have you told anyone I was coming?” he asked. 

Moira shook her head. “No, I wanted it to be a surprise.”

“Will they all be up soon?” 

“Your father, for sure. I expect him down her any minute. The girls, on the other hand… they were both up late last night so I don’t expect them for a couple more hours.”

Oliver raised an eyebrow. “Girls? I know Thea’s here, but who else?”

“Why, Felicity of course. She always spends Christmas with us. Then again, you probably wouldn’t remember that, it’s been so long since you’ve been here for the holidays.”

Felicity. He remembered now. She was Thea’s best friend when they were younger and while he didn’t specifically remember the holidays off the top of his head, he could recall more than a few times she’d been running around after his sister. In fact, the image of her he had in his mind was of a young, awkward teenager, frizzy hair in a messy ponytail, thick rimmed glasses perched on her nose making her eyes behind them looking huge. She was either laughing with Thea about something silly or chattering about something no one understood. 

It really was no wonder he hadn’t even considered she’d be here. 

“Why does she come here? Doesn’t she have her own family?” Oliver hoped he didn’t sound snide, but he was genuinely curious. He couldn’t remember any details about her family. She’d met Thea when they’d been at Starling Prep together but that was as far as he recalled. 

“Yes, but she’s Jewish and she and her mother don’t celebrate Christmas.”

Oliver took a long drink of his coffee.“Will it sound rude if I ask why she celebrates it with you guys then?”

Moira’s lips flattened into a thin line. “Oliver,” she chided. “That most definitely _is_ rude. And she celebrates with us because she loves the holiday and she’d be alone in her apartment otherwise. Her mother moved away to Vegas several years back and she’s on her own up here. She’s like one of us now, actually. Thea often brings her by for dinner on Sundays and we enjoy having her. She’s become a rather lovely young lady.”

Oliver scoffed but hid it as well as he could with his mug of coffee. He still couldn’t banish the image of that frizzy hair, buck teeth and gangly arms and legs. 

“Hey, honey, do you have today’s paper—?” a familiar voice asked from the entrance to the kitchen. “Oliver??”

He turned and smiled, seeing his father standing in his favorite robe and slippers, hair and beard mussed from sleep, stunned expression on his face. 

“In the flesh,” he replied, getting up and embracing his father in a hug. 

“Wha— How— When??” his father sputtered as they stood back. He was smiling though, clearly pleased by the surprise. 

“I just got in this morning. It was a surprise.”

“Well, hell!This is a _fantastic_ surprise! Thea is going to lose her mind,” Robert Queen predicted with a wink as he moved to the coffee maker to pour himself a cup. 

“I can’t wait to see her.”

“Don’t expect her before about 10.Maybe 11 to be on the safe side. She and Felicity were out pretty late last night.”

“Did you hear what time they got in?” Moira asked, sipping at her coffee. She held out the newspaper Robert had been asking about and he took it as he settled into the seat next to her at the table. 

“Uh… I think it was just after two.”His mother made a face and opened her mouth but his father cut her off with a raised hand. “I know we told them 1 am, but it’s Christmas, I didn’t feel like raising a fuss.”

“I suppose, but I still don’t like it,” Moira grumbled, sniffling a little. 

Oliver sat back down, feeling more than a little clueless. “Where were they until two in the morning?”

“Over at Tommy’s club. Celebrating Felicity’s new job.She’s going to help out with our new Applied Sciences division,” Robert said, snapping open the paper. 

Oliver’s head spun. Out at a club?Until two in the morning? Felicity was working for Queen Consolidated? He had to remember that his sister wasn’t the same sixteen year old girl she’d been when he last lived in Starling. He’d seen her since then, of course, but sometimes it was hard to remember she was a grown woman now. 

“I’m not sure I like that…” Oliver murmured, finishing off his coffee. “Two in the morning is a long time to be out at the club in the Glades.”

“It was Tommy’s club, Oliver. You know he’ll always keep an eye on them.”

While that was certainly true, Tommy had always viewed Thea as much his sister as Oliver’s, his old best friend was also a notorious womanizer. And if Tommy wasn’t a worry, there was a whole club of men just like him… or worse! 

He tried not to think about it as he and his father started to talk business. Thankfully, his dad didn’t ask why he’d changed his plans and come home for Christmas. It was as if Robert knew better than to ask about it.Maybe he did, from the knowing look in his eye when he’d first seen Oliver sitting at the table. Maybe his dad would be someone to talk to about it later on.For now, he was glad to discuss the family business and keep his thoughts away from the women he’d very nearly proposed to. 

***

Felicity woke up to her mouth feeling like it was filled with cotton. She smacked her lips, squinting against the light that filled Thea’s room.She was sprawled on the enormous bed next to her best friend, dressed in the sleep shorts and tank top she’d packed in her overnight bag. She supposed, considering how late they’d gotten back from the club last night, she was lucky she wasn’t still wearing her dress. Though she had absolutely zero recollection of changing. Or laying down. 

Huh. 

She desperately needed some water to drink, to rid her mouth of the desert that was taking up residence there. Her head was aching, but not too badly considering all that tequila. 

Felicity dragged herself off the bed and towards the bathroom that was attached to Thea’s room. After she took care of business, she took a long drink of water from one of the cups kept next to the sink and then washed her face.Already, she felt about a million times better. Coffee, of course, would make her feel _normal_. 

She found a bottle of aspirin in the medicine cabinet and popped a couple into her mouth, drinking down some more water.Exiting the bathroom, she saw Thea was still crashed out on the bed. Checking the clock next to the bed, Felicity saw that it was just after 9; she didn’t expect Thea to wake up too soon. She debated crawling back in bed and getting some more sleep but Felicity had never been very good at doing that. Once her brain got going in the morning, it was damn hard to settle down and fall back asleep again. 

What she should do is go find some coffee, get a shower and then wrap up the presents she’d brought to give to the Queens tomorrow morning. She hoped they all liked what she’d picked out for them. They were like a second family for her and she was eternally grateful for that. They didn’t have to welcome her into their home over the holidays, but for years now they had. They made her feel like it was her home, that they were her family too. That meant the world. 

And it sure beat reheating a tv dinner in her empty apartment.

The longer she was on her feet, the more imperative coffee became. Felicity looked around Thea’s room for a bathrobe or something to cover up with. She debated getting dressed but dismissed it as something in her ordered mind protested getting dressed and then having to get undressed again for her shower. She could always take her shower first and then go down for coffee… 

It was then that Felicity remembered Raisa. Having grown up severely middle class, having maids and housekeepers and cooks and such was a foreign concept. Maybe all she’d have to do is intercept the Queens’ ever-present housekeeper and ask her to send up some coffee. Yes, that sounded more feasible than sneaking downstairs in her jammies to get a cup of coffee. 

The hallway outside Thea’s door was empty when Felicity poked her head out so she quickly slipped out and padded quietly towards the staircase, hoping to find Raisa around the foyer. It was slightly cooler out in the rest of the house and she just knew goosebumps were starting to show up on her arms. 

Felicity made it as far as the stairs before she ran into someone. And it wasn’t Raisa. 

It was Oliver. 

He was coming up the the stairs and they collided at the top of the stairs. He reached out to steady her before she could go toppling down the stairs and that’s when Felicity saw it was him. 

She was so surprised at first that all she could do was stand and gape at him. _Oliver??_ What was he doing there? She couldn’t have been more shocked than if she’d run into Santa Claus himself.He shouldn’t be here… he wasn’t supposed to _be here_ …

And she still hadn’t said anything. She could feel her mouth working but no sound was coming out. A line appeared between Oliver’s eyebrows ( _his gorgeous eyebrows_ ) and then… he looked down. 

As his eyes dragged back up her form, she realized she was standing there, barefoot and wearing skimpy sleep shorts and a threadbare tank-top. With no bra on underneath.And it was cold. Swiftly, she came to her senses and crossed her arms in front of her chest. 

“Ahh…” she said, unsure what else to say. 

“Felicity?” he returned, sounding so unsure that she had a horrible moment where she thought he didn’t even remember who she was. 

“Uh, yeah. I’m Thea’s friend, from back in school…”

“Yeah, I remember.”

Her heart started up again. He did remember her. At least that she existed. “I was just—“

“What were you—“

They both stopped and he huffed out a laugh. _Shit_. He looked just as good as he ever had.Better, even. Which was so freaking unfair. He’d been devastatingly attractive back in high school when she’d first met him ten years ago. Like he stepped off the pages of Teen Beat or some other teenage girl magazine. But it was clear, that in the five years since she’d last seen him, that Oliver Queen had matured even further into his looks.Where he’d once been a heart-throb, now he was an Adonis. 

“I’m sorry, you go,” he prompted her. 

Felicity smiled a little nervously. “I was just seeing if I could find Raisa, ask if she could send up some coffee. I think I need a cup or three this morning.”

He grinned and the effect was devastating. “Yeah, I heard you guys were out late last night. Clubbing?”

“You—you heard about that, huh?”

“Yeah, mom and dad were talking about it down in the kitchen.”

Felicity winced. “We were supposed to be in by 1.Are they pissed?” 

“Nah, you’re good. Dad actually told mom to let it go.”

That filled her with an inexplicably warm feeling. She blew out a breath and smiled. “That’s good.”

“Hangover?” he asked, his forehead creasing a little as he dipped his head, catching her in the eye. Even without her glasses on, she could see a hint of concern in his blue eyes. 

“Not as bad as it could be. I’ve already drank a lake of water and taken some aspirin. Just need the coffee.” 

Again, he glanced down at what she was wearing and she could feel her cheeks heating. “And you were headed downstairs dressed like that?” he asked, a smile lifting the corners of his lips. 

Now, it wasn’t just embarrassment heating her cheeks, but indignation as well. “I told you, I was looking for Raisa, to see if she could bring some up.”

Oliver hummed and she could see him focus in on her legs. “Well… why don’t you let me go find her?You don’t want my parents to catch you.”

Felicity didn’t think Moira or Robert would care one bit if she was wearing shorts and a tank top around the mansion. She’d worn less when over to go in the pool with Thea during the summer. But she _was_ cold and not in the mood to argue. “Okay, that works,” she agreed. 

“I’ll have it sent up to your room right away,” he told her, his eyes still on her as she backed away. 

“Thanks, Oliver,” she said, suddenly anxious to get out of his sight.Cripes, she didn’t even have her hair brushed or any makeup on at all.She had to look a fright. 

“Don’t mention it.” 

His words followed her back to Thea’s room and Felicity leaned back against the door when she closed it. _“Don’t mention it.”_ His voice was deeper, richer.Sexier. And the scruff that shadowed his jaw… 

Felicity had always thought she was drawn to men who were clean shaven. Oliver had smooth skin the whole time she knew him, clear up until he left Starling for San Francisco.But now… with that two-day old stubble framing his sensuous mouth… she was being forced to reevaluate her position on facial hair. Wow…

Oliver Queen. She’d had a crush on him since she was 12 years old. He’d featured squarely in her sexual awakening, the face she envisioned at night as she lay in bed, squirming and heated with new feelings. She’d watched, from Thea’s side, as he charmed his way through half the girls at Starling Prep, and then after he graduated when he moved on to the club and bar scene. He’d been notorious, a bad boy to his core. But it wasn’t his bad behavior that got her attention. 

No, there were small moments where she’d see the way he interacted with Thea or with his parents, when he’d be joking around and teasing the both of them that she saw another side of him.He was beautiful, yes, but there was a good soul inside of him that she wanted desperately to know better. 

Of course, his being Thea’s brother and her being her best friend, Felicity knew better than to pursue it. Maybe when they were both older… but Thea always had idolized her brother.And the last thing Felicity wanted to do was jeopardize their friendship by testing her loyalties. Plus, she’d been young. Even more than that, Felicity hadn’t been anywhere remotely near Oliver’s league back then. 

Her awkward phase had lasted three times longer than anyone else’s.Her mother had kept assuring her that she’d grow out of it but when she’d hit sixteen and her breasts still hadn’t really developed, she had the figure of a young boy and her hair was a frizzy mess, she’d started to wonder if her mother knew what she was talking about. 

Luckily, that summer, everything had come together and she’d gone off to MIT on early admission in the fall.Oliver had never seen her when she wasn’t a gangly mess of a girl, though.His visits home hadn’t lined up with her breaks from school and then he’d moved to San Francisco and that… had been that. 

Never in a million years had she expected him to be here. Felicity had been coming to the Queen’s for Christmas for years, even when she was at MIT and home on break. Oliver had never been around, even before he moved to San Francisco. Half the time he’d been on a vacation with some girl and the other half he’d been off goofing around with Tommy. 

A soft knock at the door startled her before she realized it was likely Raisa or one of the other staff members bringing coffee.She opened the door and saw an unfamiliar woman with a tray containing an insulated carafe, several ceramic mugs and cream and sugar.Smiling, she accepted the try, thanking the woman before shutting the door. 

Felicity crossed to the small table near the windows and set the tray down, immediately fixing herself a steaming mug and taking a long satisfying sip.She sighed in satisfaction.Then, she smiled at the thought of Oliver asking that coffee be sent up for her. 

Frak, she hadn’t even bought him a present!

Felicity set the mug down and hurried over to her bag where the gifts she’d brought with her were still tucked away. She’d bought a few small things for each person, as per usual. But she’d been counting on Tommy to stop by and he’d told them last night that he might not make it so maybe she could give Tommy’s gift to Oliver and then go out after Christmas and get a replacement gift for Tommy… She’d just hate to not have _anything_ for him. 

Then… she sat down hard on the plush rug, realization finally catching up with her. Oliver saw her in her pajamas. He’d looked at her in a way he’d never looked at her before. He was in the same house, likely staying in the room one door down the hallway from her.For the last five years, Felicity had worked so hard to get over him. She’d had boyfriends, and she and Cooper had gotten serious before breaking it off. She thought she’d been fully over Oliver Queen. But five minutes in his presence and suddenly she was thrust back in, up to her neck in unrequited feelings for her best friend’s brother. 

“Oh, frack,” she whispered. 

***

After hunting down a maid to bring coffee up to Thea’s room, Oliver went to his room to unpack this things and settle in. What ended up happening was he paused by Thea’s door on his way down the hallway, imagining Felicity enjoying her coffee on the other side. Then, when he got to his room, he sat heavily on the bed and ran his hands through his short, cropped hair. 

Felicity had _not_ looked like that when he knew her before. If she had, he would have remembered her. Shit, he would have more than just remembered her. 

There was no trace of her former awkwardness. Where before she’d been all long arms and legs and immature figure, she was now curvy in all the right places. Her legs were long and toned. Her breasts were small but pert and round and begging for his hands. 

Shit, he couldn’t think like this. She was Thea’s best friend. She was practically a member of the family, according to his parents. He absolutely should not be noticing her long, golden blonde hair, her stormy grey-blue eyes, her full, pink lips. The gentle curve of her cheek. How her blush had turned her skin pink, disappearing into that tank top, making him wonder how far down her body it spread… 

He swore and scrubbed his hands over his face. No. She was like his sister. He was with Laurel… 

Except… he wasn’t with Laurel. She’d told him, just two days ago, that she wasn’t in love with him and that, perhaps, she’d _never_ been in love with him. They weren’t just over, they were bombed back to the stone age. She was probably seeing that guy she worked with at the law office, the one who just made partner last month and she made a big deal of going to his celebration dinner… 

Oliver’s stomach turned. 

Nope, he’d promised himself he wasn’t going to think about that. 

And now he couldn’t think of how unbelievably _hot_ Thea’s best friend was either. 

Now he felt uneasy about the girls being out so late at Tommy’s club for another reason… if Oliver noticed how hot Felicity was, it’s guaranteed that the average scum that filled clubs just like Tommy’s all across the city had noticed as well.Something about the thought of other men coming on to her, dancing with her, touching her… it made him want to put his fist in something.Or someone. 

Sighing, he pulled his cell out of his pocket and dialed up Tommy’s number. His oldest friend answered on the fifth ring, just before voicemail would have picked it up. 

“Oliver?What the shit, man, it’s not even ten in the morning.” Tommy’s voice was raspy. 

“Good morning to you too, buddy,” Oliver replied. 

“G’morning. Why the hell are you calling me at such a god awful hour?”

“You know, most adults are up and around by this time of day.”

“Are you my dad? What hell, Ollie.”

Oliver chuckled.God, he missed Tommy. The two of them had been thick as thieves from the time they were in first grade clear through five years ago when he’d followed Laurel to San Francisco. He had only seen him a handful of times since then. Regret twisted in his chest. 

“Sorry, buddy. It’s the truth.”

“Yeah, well adult men who run clubs sleep until noon,” Tommy grumbled. 

“Fair enough. Hey, listen. I’m in town for the holidays and I just heard my sister and her friend were out at Abracadabra last night.”

There was a pause and he could hear some shifting over the phone, telling him Tommy was sitting up.“Yeah. Yep.Thea and Felicity were definitely there. Until nearly 2 am, actually. I watched them get in an Uber myself.”

The strange feeling that had settled in Oliver’s chest before lifted somewhat. Knowing Tommy had been watching out for them helped a lot. 

“That’s great, man. I appreciate.Hey… about Felicity…”

Tommy’s laugh was quick and loud in his ear. “I was waiting for this. So you’ve seen her?”

“Yeah, I ran into her in the hallway this morning. She was looking for coffee.In her pajamas.”

“I can only imagine. Nightshirt? Camisole?”

Tommy’s tone made Oliver’s gut twist a little. “Tank top and shorts.”

His friend groaned. “Damn, I bet her legs looked amazing. Then again, I saw plenty of them in that dress she was wearing last night.”

Yep, that feeling in his gut was definitely jealousy. “So yeah… what’s her deal? I don’t remember being so…”

“Hot?” Tommy suggested. Oliver could hear the grin in his voice. “Yeah, it happened while she was at MIT. Grew into her looks or something, I don’t know. I didn’t notice myself until about two years ago when she came back to Starling.”

“Huh.” Oliver didn’t particularly like Tommy noticing the same way he had.Which begged the question… “Hey, have you and her…?”

“What are you asking, Ollie?”

“You know.I mean, you said it yourself, she’s hot. And I’ve never known you to not to go after the hot girls.”

“I mean, I’ve thought about it. But I don’t know if she’s interested and we sort of became friends so by now I think it’d kinda be strange, you know?”

“Okay.Good.”

Tommy chuckled. “Why? Are you thinking of asking her out?”

“What? No! She’s Thea’s best friend.”

“The Ollie I knew wouldn’t have let that get in his way. But… oh! I forgot about Laurel. How could I forget about her? She’s the reason you left me and everyone else behind.”

“Still not over that, are you?” 

“Never.Bitch.”

Oliver had to laugh at that. “Yeah, Laurel and I are done.”

“Done?”

“Over.”

“For good this time?”

“Oh yeah.”

“ _Really_. This sounds like a juicy story. You’re going to have to tell me about it before you go back to San Francisco. Wait… or are you going to stay here?”

Oliver blinked, caught off guard. He hadn’t even thought about it. But he hadn’t thought about going back to San Francisco either. The thought of going back there, to that apartment he’d shared with _her_ … He couldn’t fathom it. 

He felt a pull for _home_. And that home didn’t have a Golden Gate Bridge. 

“I don’t know, man. Honestly. I hadn’t thought about it yet.”

“Good. Then I have a chance to try to convince you to stay.”

Oliver found that he was looking forward to it. “Hey, are you gonna stop by later?Today or tomorrow, you know you’re always welcome here.”

“Thanks, man. I appreciate it. I’m gonna see if dad wants to do anything but I’m not going to hold my breath. I’ll keep the invitation in mind.”

“Do. I’d like to see you again and I know my family is always happy to see you.”

“If I come, can I tease you about Felicity?”

“No. Absolutely _not_.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Oliver and Felicity get to know a little more about the people they've become in the last five years.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yet again, this is not beta’d so be patient with any goofs. Before anyone asks, I want to clear up any confusion about the timeline on this. The last time Felicity saw him was six years before, when she was 16, but he’s been gone to San Francisco for five years. That first year, she was away at MIT. 
> 
> Thank you to everyone who is reading this, commenting, reblogging, retweeting, etc. Your enthusiasm is incredible and means a lot and I hope you’re enjoying the story! I might have decided to add on another chapter at the end. What can I say, you all inspired me to add on a bit and tie ends up!

“Can I borrow your lotion?” Felicity called from the bathroom to Thea, who was finishing up getting dressed in the closet. “I left mine at my apartment.”

“Sure, go ahead,” Thea called back. 

“Thanks!”

Felicity propped a foot up on the side of the tub and smoothed the lotion over her legs.She was wearing a skirt today and she wanted her legs to be looking (and smelling) their best. Plus, Thea had the most amazing assortment of lotions. 

“I can’t believe my brother is here!” Thea said as she swished into the bathroom. She was wearing a pair of black skinny jeans and a festive, midriff baring silver sweater. As always, the younger Queen looked like might as well have stepped of a runway.She was tall, svelte and always the height of glamor.Right now, she was rocking an edgy bob that framed her gorgeous face perfectly. Felicity didn’t think she could ever pull of a cut like that, but on Thea, it looked incredible. 

“Me either! Talk about the _last_ thing I expected…” Felicity said, finishing off her legs and screwing the cap back on the lotion. 

“I totally took him off guard when I jumped into his arms in the kitchen downstairs at breakfast,” her best friend said with a chuckle. “Of course, not _too_ off guard, he had no problem holding me.”

“Mm, must be the muscles,” Felicity murmured, pausing by the counter to fluff her hair which she was letting hang loose around her shoulders. She caught Thea’s eye in the mirror, an eyeliner pen in her hand, giving her a look. “What?”

“Does this mean your crush on my brother is still going strong?” she asked, a smirk twisting her lips. 

Felicity could see the blush rising up her cheeks in the mirror. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Oh, please. You’ve lusted after him since you were 12 years old.”

She gaped at her friend, causing her to laugh a little. 

“Stop, you’ll make me fuck up my eyeliner.No, I’m serious. I always knew you had a thing for him.”

“Oh, god. Was I that obvious?”

“It was pretty obvious. But don’t worry, I don’t think Ollie knew.He was a special brand of clueless back then.” 

Well, that was a relief. “It was a long time ago, Thea. I’ve left that behind. I’ve moved on.”

“Are you trying to tell me you don’t still have a crush on him?”

“Of course not. I haven’t even seen him in five years. He’s a different person now. And so I am I.”

There was a silence as Thea finished up her eyeliner. Felicity stuffed her own cosmetics back in the little bag she packed them in.Finally, Thea sighed. “All right fine. Ruin all my daydreams of my best friend and my brother getting married so we could become sisters.”

Felicity laughed out loud at that. “Don’t be an ass, Queen.”

“I can only be as my parents made me,” she replied with a wink. 

“I’m going to go hunt up some wrapping paper. I still have presents to wrap.Where should I start looking?”

Thea hummed as she thought. “Try my mom’s old craft room. It’s in the other wing, end of the hallway.”

“Okay.Catch you later!”

Felicity gathered the bag containing all the gifts from the bedroom and set off down the hallway headed towards the east wing of the mansion. She’d only been over there a handful of times, as most of the rooms the family used regularly were in the west wing of the house. She passed a few of the staff, all who asked if they could help her. When she explained she was just looking for the craft room, they steered her in the same direction that Thea had. 

Finally, she arrived at her destination. From the looks of it, Mrs. Queen had undergone a scrapbooking period as there were tables, organization and accessories relating that filling most of the room. Felicity’s own mother would probably flip her lid if she saw this room. Maybe on her next trip to Starling she’d bring her by the Queen Mansion and show her… 

Felicity set the bag with her gifts in it down and poked through a few cabinets and drawers until she found the Christmas wrapping paper on the top shelf in the closet, well out of reach.Grumbling a little, she dragged a chair over and stood on that but even then she couldn’t quite reach the nearest roll. She raised up on her toes, stretching her arm out… 

“Hey, careful there!” a voice behind her suddenly said and Felicity startled so badly that she lost her balance. 

Her foot slipped on the wooden chair and she began to fall backwards, her arms flying up but there was nothing she could do to stop connecting with the unforgiving hardwood floor below. 

Except, something did stop her from falling. A pair of strong arms banded around her torso, catching her neatly. A squeak escaped her as she was held against a very firm, very strong chest. Felicity’s first thought was _thank god_ but her second thought was _wait…_

“O—Oliver?” she asked. 

He set her down on her feet and she whirled around to look at him. He was smirking at her, an expression she’d seen him use on many women in the past never on her. 

“In the flesh. And thank goodness, or else you would have given yourself a real goose-egg hitting the floor.”

“Thank you, but if you hadn’t startled me in the first place, I wouldn’t have fallen.”

“No way. You would have fallen anyhow. Teetering on that chair with those ridiculous shoes on? Why do you think I told you to be careful?” 

Felicity gaped at him before looking down at her feet. Ridiculous? She was wearing her favorite panda flats and they happened to go great with her simple black dress and… _ridiculous_?!

“These are my favorite shoes!” she sputtered, biting back a cringe. Was that the best argument she could come up with?

Oliver shrugged.“Well, they _are_ cute,” he admitted. 

And that just made the heat rise into her cheeks.She stepped away from him and pointed up at the shelf that held the wrapping paper.“Do you think you could reach that for me?” 

“Sure thing,” he said. The paper was a bit out of his reach so he stood on the chair and grabbed it easily. 

“Why would someone put it so far out of the way?” Felicity grumbled as he handed her a roll.

“That is a very good question. An even better one is why you didn’t ask one of the staff to do your wrapping for you.”

Her eyebrows shot up. “They’ll do that?”

“Of course. That’s what I was going to do, actually. I can’t wrap a present neatly to save my life. I thought if I brought the paper with the presents and promised a nice bottle of wine, someone would be happy to help me out.”

It was such a strange concept, having someone else wrap her gifts for her.Felicity was having a hard time wrapping her mind around it. 

“I don’t mind wrapping myself. I’ll wrap yours too, if you want,” she offered. “I mean, if you’d rather I didn’t, that’s fine. I understand. But I’m going to be in the Wrapping Zone anyhow…”

“The Wrapping Zone?” he asked, the corners of his lips twitching a little. 

“Yes. I’ll have all the paper out, the scissors and tape ready, my head will be in the game. The Wrapping Zone.”

“Are you sure it’s no trouble?”

Felicity shrugged. “No trouble at all.”

“I’ll keep you company, how does that sound?”

“Deal.”

Felicity set up at the big long table in the middle of the room. Once all the paper and supplies were collected, she set her bag of gifts next to the table and got to work. Oliver perched on a stool near her, his own pile of gifts ready and waiting to be wrapped on the floor next to him and watched as she measured the paper and cut it. 

“My parents mentioned you went to MIT,” he said conversationally. 

Felicity nodded. “Yep. Graduated with degrees in Computer Sciences and Cyber Security.”

He whistled low. “Sure beats the general business degree I barely eked out from Starling City University.”

“A business degree is nothing to sneeze at, Oliver.”

“Mmm.” He didn’t sound convinced. “What made you come back to Starling? I’m sure, graduating so young with such impressive degrees had companies from all over trying to get you on their payroll.”

“I had interviews with a few. I even considered Wayne Enterprises pretty seriously.But I love Starling; it’s my home. And I’ve always loved your family and the chance to work for Queen Consolidated was too good to pass up,” she said, taping up the sides of the present she was wrapping. 

“I’m sure Thea was glad to have you back here.”

Felicity chuckled. “She sure did. And I was glad to be back with her, too. I had friends at MIT, but Thea is my _best_ friend.”

He smiled at that and Felicity remembered just how much he’d always loved Thea. Even when he was screwing up, that was never in doubt. “I’m glad you and her are still friends. My family seems to really like you.”

She blushed at that and tried to focus on the package she was wrapping. “I really like them,” she admitted.Then, she cleared her throat. “I hear you’re running the San Fransisco subsidiary.”

“Yeah, I was lucky my dad got me in there when I moved down there. But I’ve found that I’m not half bad at it.”

“That’s good.So do you plan to take over the running of QC someday then?” She kept her tone casual but she was actually keenly interested in his answer, Not just from a professional standpoint, as she was interested in the future of QC, but from a more personal place as well.Was the move to San Francisco a permanent one?

“To be honest, I haven’t thought a lot about it before now but in the last day I’ve thought about it quite a bit. My dad would like me to, I know that much.We’ll see how it goes.”

“If you came back here, would Laurel have to find a new job at a firm up here?” she asked. Felicity knew all about Laurel’s prestigious job down in California, thanks to Thea. She also knew exactly how Thea felt about Laurel. Oliver’s sister wasn’t too happy with the woman she blamed for her brother leaving town. 

Oliver was silent for a long moment and Felicity looked up from her wrapping to find him biting his lip and looking as off kilter as she’d ever seen him. Felicity set down the scissors she’d been using to cut the paper and turned her full attention on him. 

“Oliver?” she said, her voice gentle. 

He looked up and sighed. “Laurel and I broke up.I haven’t told anyone.It happened just before I flew up here. It’s _why_ I flew up here, actually.”

“Oh… I’m so sorry, Oliver.” Her heart went out to the poor guy, he looked… _sad_ wasn’t the right word. He looked twisted up. 

“She told me she wasn’t in love with me. And I think she might have been cheating on me, I don’t know for sure. I was just so surprised when she sprung it on me, telling me she was moving out, that we were over. I’ve been with her, off and on, for so long.”

“I remember when you started dating,” Felicity admitted. It was a painful memory for her, she’d been so deep in her girlish crush on him. She hadn’t come out of her room all weekend after seeing them kiss at one of the Queen’s pool parties that summer, consumed with her own personal grief. 

Going away to MIT had helped her find perspective, get over her crush on Oliver, and appreciate the world around her. But she couldn’t help but remember, vividly, how sour that pang had felt at the time. 

“Laurel… being with her felt like what I was supposed to do. Does that make sense?” Oliver asked. 

“I’m not sure? You were… _are_ in love with her, right?”Felicity bit her lip and returned her attention to wrapping, so that he wouldn’t see the look in her eye. 

“I was. I definitely was. That’s why I went with her to San Francisco. But now? I don’t know about now.”

“Just because you fought? You can turn it on and off just like that?” she asked, skeptical. She knew from experience just how hard it was to stop loving someone, even when you knew you shouldn’t. _Especially_ when you knew you shouldn’t. 

“It’s not that simple,” he said quietly.“Have you ever been in love?”

For an instant, Felicity felt like chucking the scissors she was using to cut the wrapping paper with squarely at his head. Instead, she just grit her teeth and set the scissors aside so she could wrap the small box she had set off to the side. 

“Yes, I have,” she replied. 

Felicity glanced up to see Oliver looked at her, surprised. She raised her eyebrows at him. “What?”

“You have?” 

“Of course! Most recently, with my last boyfriend at MIT.”

“You had a boyfriend?”

She told herself that he must not realize how ridiculous he sounded. “Oliver, I am 22 years old. Of course I’ve had a boyfriend!I’ve had many boyfriends!”

At least he had the grace to look chagrined.“I’m sorry. I just— sometimes it’s hard for me to not think of you as I remember you at sixteen. You know?”

“Are you saying I couldn’t have had a boyfriend back then?” she asked, her tone saucy. He leveled a look at her and she had to bite back a chuckle.“Okay, okay.Point taken.”

“So how many is ‘many’?” he asked.Felicity peered at him, noticing how he wasn’t meeting her eyes and seemed preoccupied with some lint on the knee of his jeans. 

She shrugged. “I hadn’t thought to count before, Oliver. I had three my first year. Two my second. Then, after that, just one.”

“And you were in love with him?” he asked her. 

Felicity nodded, feeling her heart pang when she thought about Cooper. “Yeah.”

“Are you— still with him?”

“No.” She took extra care in taping up the edges of the gift, making the seams neat, pressing the tape into the paper. There was a pang in her chest and she was almost surprised that it didn’t hurt as much as it used to. 

“I’m sorry… do you not want to talk about it?”

Felicity blew out a breath. “No, it’s okay. You told me about Laurel… I just haven’t talked about Cooper very much, about what happened. Our last year of school, he… we both were into this online hacktivist group. Long story short, I wrote a program that allowed us to hack into a federal database. Cooper was busted for it, I wasn’t.He hung himself in prison. I found out two days before graduation.”

Oliver looked stricken.“Oh my god.Felicity, I’m so sorry.”

She bit her lip and met his eye. She could feel her eyes watering up, but for the first time in two years since it’d happened, she didn’t feel the overwhelming grief. Without another word, Oliver got up from his stool and pulled her to her feet. Then, he wrapped his arms around her and hugged her. Felicity was taken off guard at first. But then, his arms were warm and comforting around her and she sunk into his embrace, drawing comfort from him. 

Then, there was that little voice in her head that said, _Oliver Queen is hugging you right now!_ That made her smile. 

When he released her, she smiled up at him.“Thanks.”

They each returned to their seats and she began to wrap the gifts he’d brought with him. 

“So, no one since Cooper?” he asked. 

She shook her head. “Nah. I came back to Starling after graduation and started working for QC right away. I didn’t really feel like dealing with a relationship on top of everything else. But I have gone on some dates here and there. I’m not a total shut-in.”

“I should think not. You were out until two in the morning last night, you party animal.”He winked at her. 

Felicity laughed. “It felt good to go out and let loose! Thea and I knew we were safe since its Tommy’s place and he always keeps an eye on us.”

“Good ol’ Tommy,” Oliver murmured, turning over one of the wrapped packages and then inspecting the tag. “You buy Christmas presents for my whole family?”

She smiled. “Of course. They have me here for the holidays, open up their house, give me gifts… why wouldn’t I?”

“But aren’t you Jewish?” 

“Oh, Oliver,” she said with a grin.“Yes, but that doesn’t mean I don’t like to exchange gifts with the people in my life who do celebrate Christmas. As for what they give me, I just act like it’s a belated Hanukkah gift.”

“I guess that works.” 

“Now, close your eyes because I have one to wrap for you now,” she said. 

Oliver’s eyes widened. “You— you have a gift for me? But I just showed up this morning!Felicity, you don’t have to—“

“Shh. It’s okay. It’s nothing much, just something for you to open. I wanted you to have something.”

He smiled at her and shook his head. Then, he turned in his seat to face the other way so she could wrap without him seeing. “You’re something else, Felicity.”

“Is that a compliment?” she asked. 

“It definitely is. You’re not at all what I remember.”

Felicity wrinkled her nose. “I’m not that different from how I was six years ago, Oliver. I’m just older. Wiser. A little more worldly. But I’m the same me inside.”

He hummed a little and she saw his shoulders shift. “I’m not so sure I’m the same person I was six years ago,” he admitted. “I think that’s a good thing… I was so immature and selfish.”

“I don’t know about that,” Felicity said. “I mean, yeah. Peeing on the cop wasn’t your best move. And all those times you cheated on Laurel—“

“Ugh…”

“—Weren’t great examples of your character, but you were a good brother. I remember that.”

“I guess. But I wasn’t good with you.”

Felicity fought a blush as she taped up the sides of Oliver’s gift. “You were fine. I was just Thea’s friend, you didn’t owe me anything.”

“No, but I dismissed you. And it’s clear to me now that maybe I shouldn’t have.”

She didn’t know what to say to that. So she bit her lip as she finished up the package in silence.Oliver didn’t say anything either, just kept looking the other direction.She finished, setting the present off to the side. 

“Okay, I’m done. You can look now,” she told him. 

He turned around his eyes met and held hers. Felicity’s breath caught at the intensity she saw there. He was right, he _had_ changed in the last six years. Because the Oliver she’d known back then would never, _ever_ have looked at her the way he was looking at her right now. 

“Thank you, Felicity,” he said, his serious. 

“I’m glad I could help.”

If she ever got her hands on a time machine, she was going to go back in time and tell her sixteen year old self about this moment. The poor girl would probably pass out from a toxic mixture of shock and excitement. As for her right now, Felicity felt like a part of her heart that had been heavy and unsure the last several years was now floating somewhere up in the clouds. 

***

“Hey big brother, can you pass the potatoes?” Thea asked later that afternoon at dinner, snapping Oliver out of his thoughts.He’d been staring at Felicity, thinking about the time he’d spent with her earlier while she wrapped presents. 

“Sure, Speedy,” he said, lifting the serving bowl and passing it across the table towards her. She gave him a knowing wink and a smirk before sliding her own glance to Felicity.He hadn’t exactly been hiding the way he kept looking at her. He just tilted his head at her, his way of asking “so what?”Thea just shrugged in reply. 

God, he’d missed the silent conversations they’d always had. He’d missed his little sister. He hadn’t even known how much he missed this but now… could he leave again?For what… to go back to San Francisco to be alone?It made him think. 

As Thea and his mother began to talk about a shopping trip they had planned for after Christmas, Oliver’s thoughts drifted back to Felicity. He’d actually enjoyed sitting with her, watching her meticulously wrap each package. They’d talked about a lot of things, getting progressively sillier until they were discussing opinions on music and movies and television shows. He’d admitted a secret love for a reality show about hockey wives and she’d teased him about it before he’d discovered her secret horror movie fetish.The image of them curled together on the sofa in his room here at the Queen mansion, watching a spine-tingling horror movie and her jumping and him wrapping his arms around her was strong and seductive. Oliver found that he wanted it. 

For now, they were all gathered in the dining room having a lavish Christmas Eve dinner. Their family tradition was to have the big meal on Christmas Eve and do a much smaller, more intimate meal on Christmas Day. Raisa and the kitchen staff had gone all out, with a mouth-watering roast, potatoes and veggies and salad and rolls and everything else a person could ever want to eat at a feast. Except Oliver found his attention wasn’t on food and eating, but on the enigmatic blonde sitting across from him at the table, shooting him occasional glances over the rim of her wine glass. 

Felicity wasn’t anything like he remembered her. Spending time with her today, he’d found that she was wickedly funny when she wanted to. She had a naughty sense of humor that delighted him. He’d known she was smart but he’d always been dismissive of that quality in her and in others. Today, he found that her intelligence was more than just being a “know it all”. Her mind worked quickly and Oliver found it fascinating. 

In fact, the only thing that had stopped him from making a move on her back in the craft room was the reminder that she was Thea’s best friend. Plus, he wasn’t sure if she was even interested in him that way. She loved his family; for all he knew she could view him as an older brother. 

But god, for the last few hours, he kept thinking about what it might be like to kiss her.There were sprigs of mistletoe placed around the living areas downstairs and he’d started noticing them and wondering if he could get her underneath one, to use it as an easy excuse. But so far, he’d been unsuccessful.

So instead, he fixated. Like right now, watching as she ate a bite of carrots, observing how the fork slid between her lips.Lips that were a perfect shade of dark pink. Plump, luscious… a perfectly formed bow. Would her lips taste sweet? How would she kiss him back? Would she respond actively or would she melt in his arms? 

Oliver shifted in his seat, the trousers he’d changed into for dinner growing tight. This was definitely not appropriate musings for a family dinner.But every time he looked up, he saw Felicity and his brain (as well as another part of him) couldn’t be stopped. 

His parents eventually drew him into a conversation about QC business and Thea and Felicity chatted together about someone he wasn’t familiar with (Roy Harper? Judging from the way Thea spoke of him, it sounded like someone she was interested in, which raised his Protective Big Brother hackles).He kept glancing at Felicity as he talked, feeling a wave of satisfaction each time he caught her glancing back at him. A couple of times, her cheeks turned pink and he had to wonder… what was she thinking about? 

Dinner seemed to drag on and on. Oliver was starting to feel antsy long before the staff cleared away the last plate. Everyone meandered into the media room after that. It was tradition in his family to watch a Christmas movie every year after dinner, before going to bed. As a child, it was a way to settle him and then later Thea down after dinner and before going to bed to await Santa Claus. 

The movie this year was “White Christmas”, an oldie but goodie as his mother called it. Oliver hadn’t seen it in years and barely remembered the plot. His suggestion of “Die Hard” had fallen on deaf ears, despite his protestations that it was indeed a Christmas movie. His father had tried to make a case for “The Shining” but that’s when Thea and his mother had vetoed both of them and insisted on “White Christmas”. 

Felicity curled on the couch under one of the throw blankets, sharing the other half with Thea who curled next to her. Oliver took the chair next to the couch, nearest Felicity. They had popcorn and sodas to enjoy during the movie and there was a little chatter, a little singing along with some of the songs. But Oliver couldn’t stop peering at Felicity. He wished he was the one she was curled up with, her warmth pressed up against him. Lord, this whole evening was severely trying his patience and he was starting to wonder if there was something the matter with him. 

Ever since he’d bumped into her that morning, she’d dominated his thoughts. It wasn’t just desire, though there was plenty of that. It was _her_. She was enchanting and he wanted to know more about her. He wanted to know _everything_. 

Soon, all he could focus on was her. Whenever she’d shift under the blanket, he’d track the movement. She’d taken off her ridiculous panda shoes and her bare feet and legs would show as she moved, readjusting the blanket. Or she’d lift her glass to sip out of the straw and he’d zero in on the way her lips would wrap around the plastic. Or she’d sigh, leaning back against the pillows of the couch he’d wonder what other sounds she might make, especially when he was touching her the way he wanted so badly to. 

Shit. He had to get out of her. He was losing his mind and the movie was the last thing on his mind. If he stayed here, he’d end up doing something ridiculous like kissing her in front of his whole family. 

Oliver set his bowl of popcorn aside and stood up. “I’m actually really tired. I think I’ll head up early,” he told his family and Felicity. 

Everyone was looking at him with similar expressions. Felicity had a little line between her eyebrows as she watched him, but she didn’t say anything. 

“Party pooper,” Thea declared. 

“Thea, hush,” Moira chided. 

“We’ll see you in the morning, son. Get a good night’s rest.”

“I’ll be in, jumping on your bed first thing in the morning,” Thea promised him, with a wink. 

“Will it make a difference if I tell you I sleep naked?” he asked her. 

“Oh, ew! I did not need to hear that,” she cried, making a face. 

“Indeed,” his mother agreed, leveling him with a look. Oliver shrugged. Then he turned to Felicity and smiled. 

“See you in the morning.”

“Good night,” she said quietly. 

Oliver left the room, hurried upstairs and locked his bedroom door behind him. While he had no doubt that Thea could pick the lock, he didn’t intend to make it easy for her if she felt like carrying out her threat. 

His next stop was the adjoining bathroom. He stripped out of his sweater and slacks, turning on the shower taps to hot. He needed to release some of this tension if he wanted to settle down and get his mind off his little sister’s best friend. 

***

Felicity sighed and rolled over for what felt like the hundredth time, trying not to jostle the bed or pull the blankets too much. She didn’t want to wake Thea. But the fact was it was two hours after they’d gone to bed and she was wide awake. More than that? She was _antsy_. 

Her entire body felt like a life wire, utterly resistant to laying down and trying to sleep. And any time she closed her eyes, she saw Oliver and his blue eyes hot on her. He’d stared at her all through dinner and all through the movie until he abruptly decided he was going to bed early.If she didn’t know any better, she’d think he was attracted to her. No, that sounded far too tame for those heated looks he’d given her. It was more like he craved her. 

But she _did_ know better. 

For so much of her teenage life, Oliver was this unattainable ideal. A beautiful boy who never, _ever_ looked her way. And as much as she dreamed about him finally seeing her as a person, as a girl, as someone _more_ , Felicity had been used to the way things were. She admired him from afar, he went on being the gorgeous fuck-up. It was easy, predictable, familiar. 

He wasn’t supposed to be a mature, sincere man, even more gorgeous than he was before because now he had grown into those chiseled good looks. Now he had that shadow of scruff darkening his jaw, his eyes held a gravitas that hadn’t been there when he was younger. 

And he definitely wasn’t supposed to look at her like he wanted to tear all her clothes off.With his teeth. 

But most of all, he wasn’t supposed to want to hang out with her, talk to her as if he was interested in what she had to say, ask her questions about herself, smile at her as though she was charming and captivating… 

Felicity flipped again, a little roughly. Next to her, Thea shifted and muttered in her sleep a little and Felicity cringed a little, holding still until she was sure that her friend was still sleeping. 

She couldn’t keep laying here, tossing and turning and irritating herself _and_ her best friend. Her mother had always sworn by drinking a glass of warm milk to help with falling asleep. At the very least, she would have something to do besides flop around in this bed like a fish out of water. 

Felicity snuck out of the room, closing the door carefully behind her. The hall was lit with soft lamplight so she could see where she was going. She padded down the hallway, holding her breath until she reached the stairs. The house was silent; everyone else had long since gone to bed, including the staff. That was fine by her, she wouldn’t have to worry about anyone popping out and asking her what she was doing up.

It was darker downstairs but there was moonlight streaming through the windows, lighting the way. Felicity hurried towards the kitchen, already musing that she might watch a little television while she drank her warm milk in hopes it would settle her further. She’d just have to make sure she didn’t fall asleep downstairs or else everyone would find her there in the morning and how embarrassing would _that_ be—

“Oof!” Felicity walked straight into a large object the moment she stepped into the darkened kitchen. At first, she thought she’d misjudged where the doorframe was but then the object grunted. She squeaked and jumped back. 

The light overhead suddenly flicked on, revealing Oliver standing there in his robe, gaping at her. 

“Felicity?What are you doing down here?” he asked, his voice rough. He looked down, seeing her pajamas and the slightly hysterical portion of her brain noted how he had seen her in her pajamas twice already today. 

“Oh, frack,” she whispered.His gaze coasted over her, before traveling upwards and looking over their heads. It was then that she noticed the sprig of mistletoe, hanging from the top of the doorway they were standing in. 


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What happens underneath the mistletoe? Oliver and Felicity take a big leap in their brand-new-again relationship.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Your eyes do not deceive you: I've added a new chapter. I'm not finished writing it yet (weekends are crap for productivity around here) but there will be a fifth chapter to wrap things up. You're welcome!
> 
> Also: the story earns it's explicit rating this chapter so be advised. This goes from fluff to smut. Fluffy smut? Smuff? Whatever. You get the idea. I'm not sorry. Enjoy! 
> 
> I actually read through this chapter (I have to for smut, I don't want extra/missing hands, etc) but to say it was beta'd would be a stretch. So all mistakes are mind. Have pity on me. I hate editing.

_“Felicity?  What are you doing down here?”_

_“Oh, frack,” she whispered._

There was mistletoe, hanging right over their heads. Oliver had on a robe, open, with a pair of pajama pants on underneath. His torso was bare and, holy cow, _muscles_. She, on the other hand, was in her tiny tank top and shorts and suddenly felt as though she had way too much skin on display. Or, maybe, judging from the expression on Oliver’s face, it was just enough. 

“I was— I couldn’t sleep,” she said, nervous from the hungry look in his eyes. He licked his lips and she focused in on that, how his tongue licked at those soft lips of his. She expelled a breath and it came out sounding shaky to her own ears. 

“Me either,” Oliver rumbled and he moved closer to her, close enough that she could feel the warmth from that bare torso radiating out towards her. “You’re under the mistletoe.”

“So are you,” Felicity pointed out, feeling a little breathless. 

“I’m pretty sure there’s a rule about that.”Oliver was so close now that his chest brushed against hers and she could feel her nipples tightening under the thin fabric of her tank top. 

“Yes…” Her voice didn’t sound familiar to her own ears but it might have something to do with the blood rushing through her veins and her heart pounding. Oliver lifted a hand, cupping her face and holding her steady. He began to lean towards her, moving so slowly and watching her with those insanely blue eyes that were so serious now. He was going to kiss her… she was finally going to know what it was like to kiss Oliver Queen. 

He paused, just millimeters away from her lips, his nose brushing hers. She peeked and saw his eyes were shut and he was… waiting. He was waiting for _her_. Felicity pressed forward, lifting up on her toes so that her lips pressed against his. The move was fairly artless, but Felicity was soon swept away by how perfectly their mouths fit against one another. Oliver slid the hand cupping her jaw back into her hair, tangling in the strands while his other arm banded around her back, pulling her tighter against him.She could feel the entire length of him, hard and warm against her and she reached inside his open robe to run her hands over the muscles of his torso, around to his back where she clung to him as his mouth moved expertly over hers. 

Need spiked within her as she moaned into his mouth, his tongue now tangling with hers. He tasted amazing, with a hint of whiskey. He smelled even better, an intoxicating mix of spice and musk. He surrounded her, overtook her, but Felicity was never one to be passive, even in intimate situation. Maybe especially in an intimate situation. She kissed him back for all she was worth, nipping at his lips and digging her nails into his shoulders.Oliver groaned, his mouth open and panting before he trailed sucking kisses down to her neck, focusing on that one spot underneath her ear that turned her knees to jelly. 

When her legs buckled, he yanked her up against him with a growl. His hand dropped to her ass, squeezing through her shorts before lifting her up and a moment later, she was deposited on the island that sat in the middle of the kitchen. The marble was cold against her heated skin, making her hiss and buck against him. 

“Felicity,” he muttered between kissing along her throat. Felicity let her head fall back, giving him more access.“God… “

She couldn’t believe this was happening. Her mind was reeling and all she could feel was his lips on her neck and his hands as they eased down her body. She wound her fingers into his short hair, so much shorter than it’d been when he’d been younger but god, somehow even _sexier_. He kissed over her breasts and she could feel the heat of his lips through the thin cotton of her tank top. 

Oliver easily found her nipple jutting against the fabric and he wrapped his lips around it, flicking his tongue against the stiff nub and then gently sucking her into his mouth.Felicity moaned, arching her back, pushing herself against his face. The ache between her legs was becoming quickly unbearable and that had never happened so fast for her before. 

He released her breast, pausing to rub his thumb over her other nipple, before moving down her body. He pressed hot kisses to her abdomen before arriving at the waistband of her shorts.He tugged on the elastic and Felicity got the hint, grabbing onto the counter and lifting up so he could pull them down her legs, letting them fall to the floor. He regarded her underwear, a white simple cotton and lace pair, before grabbed onto the side and tearing it away. Felicity gasped, surprised at how much that savage gesture turned her on. It was contrasted against the sweetness of how he tucked the ruined garment into the pocket of his robe. 

“God, Felicity, you’re already so wet,” he groaned, running a fingertip through her soaked folds. “Did I do this? Did my kisses make you this wet?”

“Yes,” she groaned. “Oliver…”

Felicity thought she knew what he planned to do, but even then she wasn’t prepared for how he just leaned forward, immediately licking a stripe over her clit. Felicity fell back on the island, a strangled cry ripped from her throat. She bit into her lip, not wanting to wake the whole house but _oh holy hell_ that felt _amazing._ Oliver reached up and grabbed her hip, pressing her into the cold marble and holding her still. 

All Felicity could do, as he pressed his shoulders forward, spreading her legs for him, was let go and feel what he was doing to her. She tried to muffle her cries with her hand over her mouth.With her other hand, she reached down and grabbed what she could of Oliver’s short hair. 

He ate her out with enthusiasm, licking over her open sex before flicking the tip of his tongue against her clit and then repeating. Over and over until she could feel sweat standing out on her forehead and chest.She was biting the palm she kept pressed over her mouth to keep from calling out. Never before had anyone done this quite like _this_ for her before. It was so much. It was _everything_. 

Oliver made little noises, hungry and focused, as he used his nose, his chin, his lips and his teeth and his tongue to bring her to new heights of pleasure. She could hear him as he worked her over, driving her heat higher and higher, her back bowing off the island. She could feel how her heart thundered inside of her chest, threatening to give out. The thread pulled taut and then, with a hard suck to her clit, it snapped. The pleasure rushed through her, making her thighs shake and her heart pound so loud she wondered if he could hear it. 

Felicity cried into her hand, the sounds muffled as Oliver licked her through her orgasm.Finally, she relaxed against the marble top of the island and he released her hip.She pushed up on her elbows and looked down to see him rock back on his heels, his cheeks damp with her arousal, a smug look on his face. 

“Wow,” she gasped. 

His smile grew broader as he got to his feet. She looked down and noticed his erection straining against the cotton of his pajama pants. He moved forward, pulling her up so her chest pressed against his and he kissed her, long and deep.She tasted herself on his tongue, groaning at the eroticism of that and how he seemed ready to devour her all over again. 

Oliver eased off slowly, finishing off with a few pecks at her lips. As he pulled back, he smiled at her and Felicity smiled back, her mind still reeling. The receding pleasure was like a fog, clouding her mind, gradually clearing in the light of day. Slowly, she realized what had just happened. Oliver, her best friend’s older brother, just ate her out, right there in the kitchen of his family home. 

Felicity had a sudden memory from six years before. She’d been over at the Queen’s house for a pool party, her last before leaving for MIT on early admission in a few weeks. She’d gone into the pool house to get an extra towel when she caught Oliver and… some girl, going at it like rabbits against the fridge in the little kitchen that adjoined the living area. She remembered being so shocked because the girl was very clearly _not_ Laurel, whom he was dating at the time. She’d heard that he was a bit of a player, Thea had told her plenty of stories of finding her brother with different women (but lucky for her, never _like this_ ). Seeing it for herself had brought it home. It’d made leaving Starling behind a little easier, knowing that he was bad news for her anyhow. 

Was he _still_ bad news?

Because… here she was in the kitchen with him and more than ready to have sex with him. She’d already let him start, giving her the most incredible orgasm she’d ever had in her life.What must he _think_ of her?Was she really that girl, the one who dropped her pants for a pretty smile?Casual sex was all well and fine but it just wasn’t her style. And she didn’t want to start now, not even with the amazing Oliver Queen. 

She pushed at his chest and he backed up, a line forming between his brows as he watched her hop down from the counter and bend down to grab her shorts.No underwear, of course, but it was just a short run up to Thea’s room…

“Felicity—?” Oliver asked. 

“I—I didn’t mean to do this. I just… I don’t… I’m sorry, Oliver,” Felicity said, not sure what to say to make it any less awkward. The look on his face was making her heart twist and she had to get out of there before she did something stupid, like throw herself into his arms again. 

She turned and quickly left the kitchen, her cheeks burning. She hurried up the stairs and down the hall to Thea’s room.She let herself inside as quietly as she could and noticed Thea didn’t stir in the bed. Felicity blew out a breath and went into the bathroom to clean herself up and try to settle down. 

Felicity paused at the sink, bracing her hands on the counter and holding herself there while she tried to gather herself. When she raised her head, she was shocked by what she saw in the mirror. 

Her hair was tousled, not just from her restless attempts to sleep earlier, but from Oliver’s fingers. Her lips were swollen and the skin around her mouth and down her neck was reddened because of Oliver’s scruff. There was even a dark shadow underneath her ear, where he’d practically given her a hickey.Her cheeks were flushed, her eyes were shadowed and her whole expression seemed… alert. Her heart was still pounding and when she closed her eyes, Felicity could see Oliver as clearly as if he still stood before her. 

She’d fled the kitchen because she’d been overwhelmed… even scared. Because she’d wanted Oliver, in some shape or form, for ten years of her life. Because, and maybe it’d been the lighting in the kitchen or the whims of her own foolish heart that obscured her vision, she thought she’d seen the same thing in his eyes that she felt herself. 

So she’d turned coward and ran. 

And now… now Felicity was starting to wonder if she’d made a huge mistake. Because… there was something there. She’d noticed it during the time they’d spent together today. She’d seen it in the way Oliver watched her during dinner and the movie afterward.And then, just now, down in the kitchen… he’d shown her. 

For six years, she’d worked to put Oliver Queen out of her mind, to put him in a box in her mind and move on with her life. She hadn’t been entirely successful… thoughts of Oliver would sometimes jump up unbidden at odd times. But she’d _tried_. And now, in the span of one day… she was right back where she’d been. But no, that wasn’t quite it. She was miles beyond where she’d been before. Now, she was toe to toe with Oliver and the chance she’d dreamed for when she was 16 was right in front of her. 

And she’d run away. 

What the hell had she _done_?

***

Oliver sat on the edge of his bed with a heavy sigh.He’d come up to his room after Felicity had run from him, and thrown his robe over the back of a chair. Questions, guilt, recrimination… all swirled around his mind. He’d scared her off. He’d pushed her too hard, too far, too fast and now he’d scared her off. 

Earlier that night, when he’d come up to his room, he’d started to come up with a plan.He’d thought about going to his father and talking about moving back to Starling, taking a position at the QC office here. He’d thought about asking Felicity out on a date. Then another. Then another after that. He thought about doing this right, about starting his life over again and doing it _right_. 

It was the craziest thing he’d ever considered doing in his life. He’d grown up expecting to marry Laurel Lance; it was what everyone had always wanted of him. He loved her, he knows he did. But the last few days made him question if that love was enough. Was he _in_ love with her? Laurel telling him that _she_ wasn’t in love with _him_ made him question it for the first time. 

Whatever this was with Felicity… it was different from anything he’d experienced before. He couldn’t put a label on it yet. But Oliver wanted, more than anything, to spend more time and find out just what it was. That’s where his newly-formed plan came into play. 

But then, she’d shown up downstairs in that same tank top and shorts she’d been in when he’d run into her earlier that day. The moonlight reflected off her skin, making her glow, even after he’d turned the kitchen lights on. He’d just been down there to have a drink of scotch to settle himself so he could sleep. Then Felicity was there, looking surprised, looking… 

There was mistletoe. All day long he’d been trying to get her under the mistletoe and just like that, they were there. She’d wanted to kiss him just as much as he did her, Oliver knew that. He saw it in her eyes, in the way she’d agreed before he’d kissed her, in the way she’d covered the last distance between their lips. 

But he hadn’t been prepared for the shock of want that arrowed through him as they both melted into the kiss. Why did ever think he could just kiss Felicity and have that be that?The taste of her mouth was both intoxicating and _not enough_.He’d had to taste more of her. He wanted to hear the noises she’d make out of pleasure, hear his name on her lips as she fell apart.He’d wanted so fucking badly to make her _come_. 

And so he did. He’d lifted her onto the island, tore her shorts off and buried his face between her thighs. He’d meant to be gentle but in the moment, with his blood roaring through his veins, he couldn’t find the control.She’d writhed under his grasp, stifling her noises and he’d wanted so badly to hear her but he knew… he understood. And he’d feasted. 

It had been incredible. Her taste, her sounds, how soft her skin felt, how hot and wet and perfect… His dick was _still_ hard, remembering it. And when Felicity had come, she’d been like a supernova, her back arching and her juices gushing into his waiting mouth. Thinking about it now, Oliver wanted to do it all over again. 

But as soon as she’d come down off her high, he could tell she was spooked. Her blue-grey eyes had turned from molten heat to closed wariness as she’d pulled away from him. Oliver had let her go, not knowing what else to do. He’d pushed too hard and he worried that doing anything else right then would only make it worse. 

So here he sat, his cock throbbing needily, his heart aching and his mind reeling. Tomorrow, he’d try to get a moment alone with her so he could apologize. He’d try to rebuild what he’d ruined. 

His jumbled thoughts were interrupted by a soft knock at his bedroom door.It was after midnight, there was only one person that could be.Holding his breath, Oliver crossed the room to his door, opening it. 

Felicity stood there, still in her tank top and shorts, her hair still mussed, her lips still swollen from his kisses.She was shifting from one foot to another, looking adorably nervous yet determined. 

“Felicity?” he asked her. 

“I— I shouldn’t have run off like that,” she admitted. Something in his chest loosened.He stepped back, gesturing for her to enter his room. When she did, he closed the door after her. 

She looked around his room, walking over to the large windows that overlooked the expansive grounds out behind the house.The moon was illuminating everything, reflecting off the snow that had fallen earlier that day, making everything look like it was fresh out of a fairytale. Oliver came up behind her but stopped short of reaching out to touch her shoulder like he so badly wanted to. 

Her coming to his room must mean she wanted to talk, right? It had to be a good sign.

Felicity turned around to face him and Oliver opened his mouth to ask why she’d run when she pushed up on her toes and pressed her lips to his. Oliver was taken so off guard, he didn’t even react at first. But then he realized she was kissing him… she’d come here and she’d kissed him of her own volition. And, sweet Jesus, she felt like heaven. He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her against him as he kissed her back, thrilling at the little moan she made. 

She kissed him firmly, with intent and Oliver delighted in it. In fact, she had his head spinning so much, he wasn’t even aware of her hands until he felt her fingers tug at the waistband of his pajama pants. Her nails brushed against his abdomen and his hips jolted automatically, pressing against hers.She gasped and he knew she could feel where he was hard and wanting her so badly. 

He tore his lips from hers, gasping for breath. “Felicity,” he groaned. And then, she did something he never could have seen coming.She dropped, kneeling before him. Oliver sucked in a breath as she tugged on the waistband of his pajama pants. 

“Please?” she said, stilling her hands for a moment and keeping her eyes on his. He couldn’t believe she was asking to do this, as if there was half a chance he’d say _no_. 

Oliver opened his mouth but his throat was full of a heady combination of emotion and anticipation. So he reached up and stroked a hand along her cheek, cupping her jaw. Felicity must have seen the acceptance in his eyes because she gave him a small smile before pulling the waistband of his pajama pants down.

He wasn’t wearing boxers and the purely male part of him enjoyed the gasp she made when his erection popped free. “Wow,” she breathed and then Oliver’s eyes nearly crossed when she took him in one of her hands, stroking the skin slowly, feeling every aching inch. 

“Jesus,” he gasped as she explored him. Oliver started to wonder if he’d survive this. That thought got blown to pieces in the next moment when Felicity licked up the side of his shaft. 

Her tongue was hot and wet, leaving a cool trail behind as she took her time licking from the base clear up to the head which was already swollen and dark from his arousal. She swirled her tongue around the tip and Oliver had to grab her head to keep from thrusting forward into her mouth. 

Felicity drew back a little, looking up into his eyes as she leaned forward and placed a sweet kiss right on the tip of his dick.He swore under his breath, but didn’t break eye contact. Then, she moved forward, closing her mouth over the head and sucking lightly. Oliver released her head and gathered her hair in his hands, holding it into a loose ponytail as she started to slowly bob her head up and down his length, taking more and more of him in her mouth on each pass.With one hand, she gripped the base of his shaft, twisting a little along with the movements of her head. With her other hand, she grabbed his leg, her nails digging in ever so slightly, leaving a pleasurable sting behind. 

Oliver couldn’t look away. Felicity was fucking _amazing_ at this and he wasn’t sure which sight he enjoyed more… her plush lips wrapped around his cock or the sight of that cock, glistening with her saliva as she pulled off him before plunging back down again. 

Felicity pressed her tongue against his shaft as she moved her head and her hand left his hip to cup and massage his balls, adding a whole other layer of incredible sensation to what was already becoming the best blow job of his life. She sucked hard, each time she pulled up his shaft and Oliver’s grip tightened on her hair. He wanted so badly to thrust his hips. The warm, wet suction of her mouth was driving him crazy and he groaned as she worked him.Her eyes never left his, even when he would let his head fall back, his eyes slamming shut. 

“Felicity… fuck, that feels so good.Don’t stop… don’t—“

She didn’t reply, instead sucking harder and faster, her fingers on his shaft squeezing as she twisted her wrist.He couldn’t take it anymore, and he started to rock his hips.Not hard enough to thrust into her throat like his body was screaming at him to do, but enough to heighten the sensation.Felicity hummed her approval around his cock, the vibrations traveling down his length and setting him on fire. 

She slowed and pulled back until she was only sucking on the very tip. He whined a little and then, she moved forward and kept moving forward. Inch after inch slowly disappeared between her lips as she swallowed him down, her tongue pressing him to the roof of her mouth as she moved forward. He felt the head of his cock bump against the back of her throat and he cursed again, loudly this time. Then… she _swallowed_. 

Her throat muscles squeezed around the tip of his dick while her tongue stroked the length and Oliver knew he couldn’t hold on anymore. “Felicity!” he cried, his fingers clenching in her hair. “I’m going to— I’m gonna—!”

She hummed before swallowing again and that was all he could take. His released exploded from him, the lightening feel of it spreading out through his body as he emptied into her mouth. Felicity swallowed it all, continuing to work him through the tremors as his body clenched and pulsed. 

When she finally drew away from him, he could see her eyes were watery but she was smiling at him as she pulled his pajama pants back up, tucking him sweetly away. Oliver panted, trying to find his breath again, trying to wrap his mind around _anything_ after that mind blowing orgasm. He had a feeling he was staring at her like she’d hung the moon but he couldn’t help himself. 

Plus, he was utterly charmed by the blush that colored her cheeks as she stood back up. How she could _blush_ after she’d given him such a mind-blowing orgasm was… unexpectedly sweet. 

Oliver was about to find somewhere to sit, since his legs felt like jelly, and pull her with him, maybe into his lap, so they could talk. They needed to talk. But she started backing away, still smiling a little though it wasn’t reaching her eyes now. 

“I just… wanted to return the favor,” she said.“And now, I’m going to go see if I can sleep and—“

Oliver’s hand shot out and he grabbed her arm before she could take another step away.“Wait! Felicity… don’t go.”

She looked back at him and licked her lips. “Oliver…”

“No, we’re going to talk.”

She blew out a breath and nodded. “I just… I didn’t want you to think you had to do anything or say anything. I get that you’re fresh out of a relationship and you don’t even live here anymore and you’re Thea’s older brother and—“

He held up a hand to stop her babble.“Felicity… I wouldn’t insist we talk if I didn’t _want_ to talk.”

Oliver gestured her over to the sofa that sat in front of the large stone fireplace that dominated one wall of his bedroom.She sat down and he sat next to her. He didn’t touch her, though he wanted to. 

“Down in the kitchen, I got a little… overwhelmed,” she explained, her hands twisting in her lap. “We were kissing and then you… well.You did what you did _very_ well.”

He smiled, hoping to set her at ease. “I’m sorry if I came on a bit a strong.That wasn’t my plan.”

One of her eyebrows arched up. “Plan? You knew I’d be coming down to the kitchen in the middle of the night for a warm glass of milk?”

“No… but after today, I wanted to get to know you. I wanted to take it easy, do it right.”

“You don’t even liven in Starling anymore,” she pointed out, a little breathless. Her eyes were wide and intent on his face and he knew the expression of someone who was trying not to hope. It made his heart twist in his chest. When he didn’t immediately reply, her mouth dropped open. “Oh…! Are you thinking about moving back?”

Oliver shrugged. “I was considering it. When I saw you downstairs, I hadn’t meant to kiss you but you were right there, so beautiful, the mistletoe right there and I could see in your eyes that you wanted me to.You did, didn’t you?”

She nodded. “I did. I… do.”

His heart leapt in his chest. He reached out and took one of her hands in his.Her fingers were warm and soft, smooth against the calluses of his own. “Felicity… there’s something between us, isn’t there? You feel it too?”

“Yeah,” she murmured, her eyes skating over his features. “I do.”She paused and cleared her throat and he noticed she looked a little embarrassed. “Actually, I’ve wanted you since I was a teenager. Since… way back before.”

Oliver didn’t know why he was surprised, but he was. Every woman (and some of the men) in Starling under the age of 30 had been attracted to him back then and, worse, he’d known it. But he’d never even stopped to _consider_ Felicity having feelings for him. Shoot, he’d never considered her period. “I didn’t know…”

“I know. It’s okay. I was painfully awkward back then.”

“And I was a self-involved prick,” Oliver added, squeezing her hand. 

“That too,” she agreed, giving him a wink.He huffed out a laugh. “But maybe now is another story? Are you saying there’s a chance…?”

“I’d like there to be,” he admitted. “If I didn’t totally mess things up by ravishing you on my parent’s kitchen counter.”

Felicity laughed and it was such a lovely sound, he immediately knew he wanted to hear more of it. “Ravished? Is this regency era England? And if doing that messed things up, then me coming in here and…” She trailed off, gesturing towards his lap with her free hand. “Well, then _that_ put a nail in the coffin of the whole thing.”

Oliver smiled, relaxing. She had a sense of humor about it, which had to be a very good sign. “So… are you saying I didn’t mess all this up?”

She shook her head. “No. Not from where I’m standing. Er… sitting.”

“If that’s the case, then I’m going to kiss you now,” he said, shifting towards her and cupping her face. 

“Okay,” she said, her voice soft and her eyes already on his lips. 

This time, Oliver didn’t hesitate. With his hand cupping her jaw, he drew her towards him and captured her soft, plush lips with his own. This kiss was just as perfect as the last one, maybe even more so now that he knew they were on the same page. The attraction between them was a two way street and they both felt it. 

Felicity wasn’t a passive participant either, which Oliver was finding really worked for him. She pressed forward, her fingers tangling in his hair and stroking over the muscles of his arm and back.Her tongue stroked against his, enticing him and building his arousal up until it ran like lava through his veins. She made these little noises, sighs and gasps and moans, that he chased with his mouth. God, he wanted more. He _needed_ more. 

He broke the kiss with a gasp and they watched each other for a long moment, both breathing hard. “Felicity… I don’t want to push you,” he told her. 

She nodded, her eyes dark on his. “I want you, Oliver.” 

“I want you too. Is it too soon? Is this too fast?” he asked her. 

“Maybe. Probably.”His heart started to sink as she watched her.She licked her lips and he tried not to groan too loudly. “But I don’t care,” she finished. 

Oliver yanked her against him, crushing his lips to hers. This kiss wasn’t gentle. It was filled with need, lust and passion. He nipped at her lips and she nipped back as she dug her nails into the bare skin of his shoulders. He pushed her back onto the sofa so that he was hovering over her. He pressed his hips into hers so she could feel exactly how hard he was again. How hard he was for _her_. 

This was going to happen.And judging from the way Felicity pushed her hips back against his, rubbing against him, she wanted it every bit as badly as he did. 


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After their night together, Oliver and Felicity have to face some realities in the light of (Christmas) day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I looked over the first part of this chapter but this is still pretty much un-beta'd so I apologize for any mistakes. I really wish I liked editing more. But I don't. 
> 
> I'm hoping to have this extra/last chapter ready to post by tomorrow. If it's not I'll post it whenever I can. Thank you to EVERYONE who is reading this story and leaving me lovely little comments. You guys make writing an interactive experience!

Felicity felt like she was catching fire. Oliver was kissing her and more than that… he wanted her. This wasn’t all in her mind, this wasn’t a fleeting mistake… the attraction she’d felt all day that had been reignited after lying dormant all these years was reciprocated. It was amazing and incredible and a miracle.

Her very own holiday miracle. 

It sounded cheesy even to her own ears. But how else she explain it? 

His lips burned a trail over her jaw and down to her neck. Felicity arched against him, trapped between him and the sofa. His hips pressed into hers and she pushed back, and felt how his hardening cock rubbed perfectly against the seam in her sleep shorts. 

She whined a little in her throat, wanting more, needing more. Oliver seemed to understand and an instant later he was up and standing next to her. He pulled her up with him, grabbing for her thighs and encouraging her to hop up. She wrapped her legs around his waist as he carried them to his enormous bed. He carried as though she weighed nearly nothing and Felicity tried hard not get too distracted by how awesome that was. But then he lowered her easily and all bets were off. 

Beams of moonlight spilled across the sheets as he helped her settle down into the mattress. He was treating her as though she was made of spun glass, which made her heart clench with an unnamed emotion.After the ferociousness of the kiss on the sofa, after the passion of her sucking him off and the intensity with which he ate her out downstairs… the gentleness was a stark contrast.He looked down at her with such a serious, affectionate expression that she could only stare back, getting lost in his gorgeous crystalline blue eyes.Felicity kept her eyes on his as he drew off her tank top, lifting her shoulders so he could pull it over her head and toss it away.Then, he pulled off her shorts for the second time that night, this time taking the time to drag the fabric down her legs slowly, uncovering each inch to his rapt gaze. 

He looked over her slowly, taking in every swell and curve and bump and blemish. But all she saw in his eyes was appreciation and while it still made her cheeks heat, it wasn’t with embarrassment. He made her feel sexy and she took advantage of the confidence boost to stretch herself out, arms over her head. Oliver’s mouth popped open a little before he stepped back and shook his head at her. 

“You’re killing me here, Smoak,” he told her fondly. 

“You can’t die until you’ve given me at least one more orgasm,” she replied, batting her eyelashes at him and making him chuckle. 

She watched, enraptured, as he hooked his thumbs in the waistband of his pajama pants and shoved them down his hips. Felicity pushed up onto her elbows and really appreciated the sight of Oliver Queen naked for the first time. She’d sucked him off before, sure, but she hadn’t really appreciated the full effect at the time, her attentions being focused on one very specific part of him. 

The man was a god.He looked like he’d been sculpted, with muscles in all the right places. Muscles that rippled and shifted enticingly as he moved towards her again.He got on the bed, down by her feet and Felicity watched him curiously. He started at her ankle, kissing along her skin and stroking lightly with his fingers as he moved up her body. 

Felicity shivered and arched as he caressed the more sensitive areas…the back of her knee, the inside of her thigh, the hollow of her hip… He placed a soft, wet kiss on her hip bone at the same time as his fingers brushed ever so lightly against her folds, just barely grazing her clit. Felicity’s hips jumped and he chuckled before continuing his steady trek over her body. 

Oliver spent a great deal of time on her breasts, lingering on the left with his mouth, lips and tongue and teasing the right with his fingers. He pinched and pulled and stroked while he sucked and licked and lightly bit. Felicity’s hips were rolling as the arousal built inside her, steady like a campfire, until the flames were licking high enough to have her moaning loudly as he nibbled at her nipple. 

“Oliver!” she cried, her voice breaking on a sob. 

He chuckled lowly and moved up, kissing along her collar bone before licking a stripe over the skin on her shoulder. She knew she was damp with sweat, from being teased by him, but he didn’t seem to mind one bit. In fact, he started to lick and kiss a trail up her neck before latching on right below her ear.When his teeth scraped the sensitive skin, Felicity let out a loud yelp that had Oliver raising up over her and covering her lips with his own. 

He kissed her hungrily, and that told her that he was just as on edge as she was.As he nipped at her lips, she reached down between their bodies until she reached his hardened length. She smiled to herself as Oliver tore his lips from hers, gasping. If the 16 year old her had seen how well Oliver was… _endowed_ … she would have run screaming for the hills. Lucky thing that 22 year old Felicity wasn’t scared by his girth. Or his length. No, in the wise words of the Goldilocks, he was _just right_. 

“What are you giggling about?” he asked her, his voice husky. He dropped little kisses next to her mouth as he waited for her to answer. 

She stroked his length firmly before giving him a tight squeeze that had him groaning in her ear. She thrilled a little, knowing that she could affect him like this. It was only fair, seeing how effortlessly he affected her… 

“Just thinking how lucky I am right now,” she told him, letting go of his cock and reaching up to run her palms over his shoulders. It wasn’t a lie. 

“You’re not the only one,” he murmured, kissing her again with such sweet, aching tenderness that it made her breath catch. He took his time, building her arousal all over again, until she was writhing against him, trying to encourage a stronger reaction. 

He drew back and she fought a whimper. “Oliver…”

“Patience…”

He reached down and stroked a finger through her folds. Felicity widened her legs, giving him more access and arching into his touch. He teased, his touch light, avoiding where she wanted him the most. Patience was definitely not something she had a good grasp on at the moment. She wanted him inside of her or rubbing her clit and he circled around those spots… building the fire inside her higher and higher until she was moaning nonsensically in his ear. 

“Please… _please_ …!” she gasped. 

“What, Felicity? What do you want me to do?” he asked, his breath hot on her neck. 

“I need— I want—“

“Use your words,” he urged, his tone light and teasing but she could tell by the way he held himself over her that he was feeling the tension brewing between them. 

“Please…”He was going to make her say it. Felicity bit down hard on her lower lip, but her mind was already fragmenting in a cascade of need.She arched underneath him, her nipples dragging over his chest. “Fuck me.”

He groaned loudly then and Felicity realized he really enjoyed hearing her say that. So she did it again. “Fuck me,” she repeated, arching her hips into his and digging her nails into his back. Oliver pushed back, rubbing her just right and making her gasp. 

Then, he pulled back entirely. Felicity was about to ask what was the matter, but she saw the dark, open look on his face. “Be right back,” he told her, his voice low.She watched him go into the bathroom, striding across the room, confident in his nakedness. 

God, his ass was beautiful. 

He returned a moment later, brandishing a strip of condoms triumphantly. Felicity blew out a chuckle. She hadn’t even thought of that.“I suppose I should be glad you came prepared,” she remarked, a little breathless, as he settled back onto the bed next to her. 

He shrugged a shoulder. “And I wasn’t even a boy scout.” 

Felicity grinned as she took the strip from him. She tore open one of the packages, drew out a condom and, pushing Oliver onto his back, straddled his thighs and rolled it down his straining shaft. 

“Felicity,” he moaned, shifting under her as her touch lingered on him. 

“Now who’s feeling all needy?” she asked, giving him a rough pump that had him lifting his hips to her. She bent to press a kiss to the underside of his jaw before moving over to his ear. “What do you want, Oliver?” she whispered. 

“Turning the… _guh_ … tables on me?” he asked.

“Working on it,” Felicity murmured as she moved up to kiss him. Oliver’s lips were soft and full and parted easily as she deepened the kiss. His tongue stroked hers and she reveled in his heady taste. And, holy crap, could he kiss.Within moments, everything in her existence was narrowed down to his lips moving expertly over hers. His hands were in her hair, holding her head and angling her so he could kiss her deeper, harder.Felicity melted against him. 

Oliver took advantage of her bonelessness to flip them over in one, brilliant, breathtaking maneuver.Felicity’s breath whooshed out of her as she suddenly found herself flat against the mattress with Oliver looming over her. His eyes gleamed wickedly as he grinned down at her and she would have liked to smack him on the arm or at least toss out a chiding but witty rejoinder. But he stole her thoughts. And, quite frankly, she wanted him inside her as soon as possible. 

The thought must have been mutual because Oliver reached down for the back of her thigh, encouraging her to lift it over his hip. It opened her up for him and she could feel his cock already sliding against where she was wet and needing him. He reached down, positioned his cock and then, slowly, pushed forward. 

Oliver was big, a lot bigger than she was used to. Which, these days, amounted to her fingers or her trusty vibrator.He went slow, though, easing in before drawing back and pushing back in a little further. She could see his jaw clenching, the only indicator that he was holding himself back from slamming into her. Felicity reached around to squeeze his ass, encouraging him to keep moving. He groaned when her fingers dug in. 

“Felicity… you’re killing me.” 

“I’m sorry,” she said, not feeling the least bit sorry. 

“No, you’re not.”He pushed in a little further and now they both groaned.The stretch was exquisite… pain to the point of pleasure. 

“C’mon,” she urged him, tightening her grip. 

Oliver gripped her leg with one hand, her waist with the other and thrust with his hips. When he was completely sheathed inside of her, they both paused for a moment. He looked down into her eyes, checking her reaction. She leaned up and pressed a soft kiss to his mouth. 

“You okay?” he asked quietly. 

“More than.”

And it was true.She was doing this, she was having sex with Oliver. He wasn’t the boy she’d fallen head over heels with. He’d grown and changed and even just an afternoon with him had shown her that much.She hoped, more than anything, that she got to know more about the man he was now. It sounded like she might have a chance. 

But for now, Oliver was balls-deep inside of her and Felicity had to bite her cheek to keep the hysterical giggle that wanted to bubble up from her throat in check. 

He began to move and any thoughts or giggles were wiped away as he drove his hips against her in a steady, strong rhythm. Felicity arched towards him, trying to meet his thrusts but he was quickly obliterating her senses. His hand fit between their bodies, stroking along her clit in time with his thrusts and soon all Felicity could do was hold on and cry out. Especially when he shifted his hips, hiking her leg up higher and started hitting a place inside her that made her eyes want to cross. 

“Oh! God, Oliver! Right there…!”

“Fuck, Felicity… this feels too good,” he groaned as he thrust into her. 

She was swept away. Time and reason and logic had no meaning and all she had was Oliver over her, in her, around her… he was staring into her eyes, he was kissing her, he was giving her pleasure like she’d never had before in her life. 

It was everything. 

He moved faster, harder. His hips pounded against hers, the sound of their coupling filling the room in an almost obscene way that just drove her arousal further and higher. Felicity could no longer form words, but cried out with each thrust. His fingers played over her clit expertly… rubbing and flicking until she could feel the thread of her release draw impossibly tight and then… break. 

She came so hard that she swore she saw stars. She was babbling, possibly chanting his name, as pleasure soaked through her limbs, radiating out to her fingers and toes. Oliver wasn’t quiet either, moans growing louder as he neared his own release. He slammed into her two more times before holding still over her, gasping her name. 

Felicity held onto him, the sweat cooling on both of them, reveling in his weight as he pressed her down into the mattress.This felt solid, it felt real. She’d never had sex like that before. She thought experiences like that were limited to books and movies. 

Amazing. 

After a few long moments, where they just held one another, Oliver finally moved off of her, pulling out and leaving her whimpering at the loss of him from inside of her. He’d just withdrawn and already she was wanting to have him back. Again and again and again. So this was what it was like to be insatiable. 

After pressing a kiss to her sweaty temple, Oliver got out of the bed and padding into the bathroom, presumably to dispose of the condom. She heard some water running and a moment later he was back with a warm washcloth. She pushed up on her elbows, holding her hand out to take it from him but he pushed her hand aside and proceeded to clean her up himself. Her cheeks heated at the surprisingly intimate maneuver. When he was done, Oliver tossed the washcloth aside and climbed into the bed, pulling the blankets up over both of them.Felicity cuddled into his side, relishing his warmth against her cooling skin and he wrapped an arm around her, pulling her closer. 

“I should go back to Thea’s room,” she murmured, but without a lot of conviction. 

“Not gonna happen,” he murmured, tightening his grip. 

“But she’ll see me gone when she wakes up—“

“And?”

For the first time since this whole… whatever it was started, Felicity felt uncertainty creeping in. “What will she think if she finds out I was here with you all night?”

Oliver was silent. She felt his scruff scrape against her shoulder as he pressed a kiss there. 

“She’s my best friend.” Felicity felt a little helpless, which warred unpleasantly with the contentment that came from being with Oliver. 

“And she’s my sister. Thea’s smart and she’ll understand.”

“Still. Shouldn’t I be there? Tell her myself instead of her finding out?” 

“I’ll tell you what,” Oliver said, pressing another kiss to her shoulder, this time closer to the juncture with her neck, causing her to shiver a little. “Tomorrow, first thing, even before presents, you and I will find her and tell her ourselves. Okay?Before she has a chance to find out.” 

It still didn’t sit entirely right with her. But Felicity really liked how it felt to be wrapped up in his arms, his bare legs tangling with hers, his lips on her skin. She didn’t want to leave this bed any more than he wanted her to leave it. 

“Okay, you talked me into it.”

“I’m very good with persuasion,” he murmured. To emphasize his point, he pushed his hips against her. She could feel his cock, already hardening, pushing against her ass.She pushed back, enjoying how he bit off a groan. 

“Why don’t you prove it?” she goaded him, scratching her nails up his forearm.Oliver growled in her ear and just like that, she was ready to go again. 

And, as it turns out, so was he. 

***

The light in his room was still dim when there was an insistent knocking at his door. Oliver cracked an eye open, feeling like he’d only been asleep for a half hour. Who the hell was knocking on his door in the middle of the night?Or at least at some god awful early hour. 

Next to him, curled into his chest, Felicity stirred at the noise and grumbled a little. Oliver had to smile. She was downright adorable. He knew she was exhausted; neither of them had slept much the previous night. The last round of sex had finally sapped the last of their energy. He hadn’t even gotten out of bed to dispose the spent condom that time, instead dumping it on the floor. 

The knocking wasn’t stopping thought, was getting louder and more insistent. He could hear someone talking but couldn’t make out who or what they were saying. 

Oliver was waking up now but he wanted Felicity to be able to sleep a little more. Holding his breath, he slipped out from underneath her, helping her to settle into the warm spot he left behind. He stood up, bending down to scoop up the used condom and hurrying into the bathroom to toss it in the trash.Then, he grabbed a pair of sweatpants from his suitcase and slipped them on before going to the door. 

He cracked it open and was surprised to find Thea standing on the other side. She was in her pajamas and bathrobe but looked reasonably alert. 

“Speedy? What are you doing up so early?” he asked her, rubbing at his eyes but keeping the door cracked. Remembering what they’d talked about the night before, he didn’t want Thea to see past him to where Felicity slept in his bed. 

“Early? Ollie, it’s half past eight. Which, yes, is early for a normal day but this is Christmas and you know that’s an early morning for me.” 

Oliver did recall. When they were younger, Thea would be getting them up the instant the sun was starting to think of coming up. Ten years ago, 8:30 would have been considered mid-day by her standards. 

“How is it 8:30? It’s still dark out.”

“Because it’s snowing, silly.Listen, I’m looking for Felicity.She wasn’t in the room when I woke up and I didn’t see her downstairs on the couch or anything.”

Oh. _Shit_.

“Have you seen her? I mean, I guess you haven’t since you were just sleeping. But did you see her last night, maybe?Or can you help me find her? I’m getting a little worried. Her car is still here but what if she went outside and fell asleep and it’s snowing on her and she gets hypothermia…” Thea rattled, looking worried. 

Oliver held up a hand to stall her ramble. “Speedy. Relax.”Then he paused.What did he do here?Tell her he knew where Felicity was?He knew his sister, he knew how tenacious she was. But he couldn’t let her worry about her friend either. “She’s not outside.”

Her eyes widened. “She’s not?” Then, her eyes narrowed. “How do you know?Do you know where she is?”

He grit his teeth together. “I do know where she is. She’s fine.”

“Well, then where is she?” 

He didn’t say anything, but shifted his weight uncomfortably. 

“Ollie?What’s going on?Where is she?”

“Speedy… can you give me a few minutes? I’ll get dressed and come downstairs and we can talk.”

Yes, his sister was full-on suspicious now. She tried to look past him, into his room and he moved to block her view, closing the door a little more. “What the hell? Is she in there?”

_Fuck_. 

“Speedy… please?”

“Fuck that, Ollie. You’re keeping something from me and I want to know right now what it is.” Thea pushed on the door and when he held fast, she only pushed harder, giving him a hard look. Sighing, Oliver stood back and let her come in. 

Felicity was covered by the blankets on his bed, thank goodness. And she was still fast asleep.Her blonde hair was tousled, obscuring most of her face. But it was undeniably her. 

Thea stopped short, several feed from his bed and gaped at the sight.“What the… you _slept_ with her??” Thea screeched, turning on him. 

Oliver winced and looked over Thea’s shoulder to where Felicity jerked at the loud voice.Pushing her hair out of her face, she blinked her eyes open. Resigned, Oliver watched as she squinted at Thea, clearly trying to comprehend what she was seeing, given she wasn’t wearing her glasses. 

“Thea?” Felicity’s voice was hoarse and scratchy and, Oliver almost hated to admit it given the situation, sounded pretty damn sexy. 

His sister turned to face her friend, her expression changing from the venomous look she was currently leveling at him to something softer. “Felicity, I woke up and you weren’t there. I got worried,” Thea explained. She gestured around at Oliver’s room. “What are you doing here? What did he do to you?”

Felicity sat up, gathering the blanket around her chest.Her eyes met his and she saw the apprehension there.Oliver felt terrible. This is exactly what she’d worried about and he’d promised her they’d handle it. 

“Thea… I’m sorry,” she began and then trailed off, looking helpless.Oliver’s heart went out to her. 

He moved between her and Thea and sat on the bed, placing a hand on Felicity’s knee through the blankets. “We wanted to come to you and talk to you together. Before you started to worry.”

“Talk to me about what? What the hell is going on?Obviously you two slept together. But… how?”

“I ran into Oliver last night when I went downstairs for a warm glass of milk. I was having trouble sleeping,” Felicity explained. 

“There was mistletoe and—“

Thea held up a hand, cutting Oliver off.“Nope. I don’t need details.”She turned her attention on Felicity. “I knew you were full of shit when you told me yesterday that you didn’t still have a crush on him.” Her grin made Oliver’s shoulders relax a touch; she wasn’t too mad if she was teasing her friend. 

Felicity blushed and god he loved how her cheeks turned pink.“Thea…” she grumbled. 

“Don’t tell me you didn’t know,” Thea said to him, raising an eyebrow. 

“I didn’t.”

“Oh my god. Clueless, much?”

“Thea, not that I’m not enjoying this but can you give us a few minutes to get ourselves together here? We can continue the conversation after we’re all showered and dressed.” 

Thea shook her head at both of them. Then she fixed Oliver with a hard look.“We will be talking about this later, mister. This is my best friend here. I know you and Laurel broke up, but I’m not about to have you treating her like some cheap one night stand.”

“Thea!” Felicity cried. 

His sister held up her hands in a gesture of surrender. “Later.We’ll talk later.Felicity, I’ll grab some clothes from your bag and leave them outside the door, okay?”

“Thanks.”

Oliver walked Thea to the door and closed it behind her. He turned back to Felicity and blew out a breath, rubbing his hands over his head. 

“I’m sorry, Felicity. I had no idea it was so late.”

She shrugged a shoulder and smiled a little. “It’s okay. It was my choice to stay in here last night. If I’d wanted to go, you couldn’t have stopped me.”

Oliver had no doubt of that. He held out a hand to her and she took it, letting the blanket fall away. There was no stopping the appreciative look he gave her as her curves were revealed.He pulled her up and out of bed so she stood before him. Leaning down, he pecked at her lips. 

“What do you say about a shower?”

“Together?”

“Mmhmm.” He ran his hands down over her hips, smoothing over the soft skin there.

“Then coffee?” she asked hopefully. 

Oliver chuckled. “Then, coffee.”

***

Felicity thought she’d slip away or linger behind when leaving Oliver’s room. She thought it’d be better, easier, if they didn’t appear downstairs together. Oliver, however, vehemently disagreed.He grabbed ahold of her hand and pulled her out of the room with him. 

Her heart was pounding in her chest. What would his family think?

Thea was down in the living room, sitting in a chair near the Christmas tree.She was looking out the window at the snow and as they stepped in the room, Oliver nudged her towards Thea. 

“I’ll go get us some coffee,” he whispered in her ear. “Meet you back here in a few minutes.”

With a wink, he sauntered away towards the kitchen. Felicity smiled after him, shaking her head a little.He knew she wanted a moment with her friend. Somehow… he knew.If nothing else had proved he wasn’t the same careless boy he’d been, if the night they’d spent in each others arms hadn’t proved that, this did. 

Felicity walked over to where Thea was sitting. “Hey,” she said softly. 

The other girl’s head whipped around. “Oh! I didn’t hear you. Sorry, I was just—“ She gestured at the window. “Watching the snow.”

“It’s sure coming down,” Felicity agreed, taking a seat in the chair next to Thea’s. 

“I don’t know how to start this conversation,” Thea admitted. 

Felicity blew out a laugh. “Me either.”

“So, does this mean the crush is still on?” she asked, turning to face her. 

“I don’t think it was ever really off.But it’s not a crush anymore.” Felicity shook her head when Thea raised a skeptical eyebrow at her. “It’s not.”

“So… then what is it?”

“I—I have feelings for him. I think he might have feelings for me. I don’t know. He—I want a chance to find out.”

“Is he staying here in Starling?”

“I don’t know. Maybe? It all just… happened, Thea.”

“But you’re Felicity Smoak. You never let things just happen. You do everything on purpose and over-analyze it to death beforehand.”

She was right, of course. Ever since she was a kid, Felicity had been very analytical, very thoughtful and never prone to impulsivity. Reason and logic were her friends. Thea always teased her about it, told her she needed to lighten up and live a little. 

“Well, maybe I’m finally taking your advice.”

Thea snorted. “Yeah, with my brother. I love the guy but… I just don’t want to see you get hurt.”

Felicity reached out and took Thea’s hand, squeezing it. “I know. And thank you for that. If it helps any, I know what I’m doing.And I’m happy.”

“Well, that’s what’s important.”

Oliver returned just then, bearing mugs of coffee for himself and her. He sat next to her on the sofa and squeezed her knee.The conversation turned more casual and Felicity was glad to see Thea had relaxed quite a bit in her posture as she watched the two of them. 

Robert and Moira joined them shortly after that and if they noticed the closeness between her and Oliver, neither of them said anything.Raisa brought in some pastries on a cart and everyone started to dig into the pile of presents stacked underneath the Christmas tree. 

Felicity sat back against the sofa cushions and watched the Queen family enjoy their Christmas together. She sipped at her coffee and smiled as they joked off one another. The happiness in Moira’s eyes was unmistakable as she kept looking to her son, as though she couldn’t believe he was actually there. She watched Robert tease Thea with an easiness that spoke to how close they actually were. She enjoyed how Oliver slipped into quoting favorite movies with Robert, spiraling into their own little in-joke world as though they did this every Sunday of the year. 

Felicity hoped Oliver decided to stay in Starling. Not just for her sake, though that was a huge part of it. But for his family. She loved the Queens and spent a lot of time over here with them. But she hadn’t seen them all this happy in years. Oliver being home again was like a puzzle piece fitting into place. 

Oliver was so delightfully pleased at the gift she gave him too. It was just a pair of wool socks that she’d initially picked out for Tommy, nothing terribly special. But the way Oliver touched the socks, and then looked at her, made her heart leap into her throat. 

“Thank you,” he told her earnestly. 

“You’re welcome. I’m not sure how much use you’ll get out of wool socks down in San Francisco…” Felicity trailed off, shrugging a little and the implication of her words was clear. The look Oliver gave her told her he received the message loud and clear. 

“I think maybe I’ll be getting a lot of use out of them, Felicity.I love the socks,” he told her, earnestly. He leaned forward and pressed a soft kiss to her cheek that made her blush.And when he drew back, she saw Robert and Moira gaping at them and Thea trying to hide a smile behind her hand. 

“Did I miss something?” Robert asked, smiling but looking definitely curious as he looked between her and Oliver both. 

Moira, for her part, was smiling at the both of them. Felicity couldn’t look at either of them for fear her face would give away everything.Why was she so nervous about this? Why did the Queen’s approval mean, suddenly, everything to her? 

“You might have missed a thing or two,” Thea muttered cryptically.Robert looked even more confused than ever. 

“I think its time that I talked to you about some things I’ve been thinking, Dad,” Oliver said, patting Felicity’s knee.She swallowed nervously. _Here we go._


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Oliver sorts out his future.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we are at the end! I’ve seen a lot of people asking for more, but there just... isn’t. I believe strongly in beginnings, middles and ends and we have reached the end of this story. The prompt was probably meant to be a oneshot and I turned it into FIVE chapters. 
> 
> Again, un-beta’d cuz I’m the worst. 
> 
> I hope you enjoyed this story! Thank you to everyone for reading and engaging!

Oliver could tell Felicity was more than a little frazzled by his parents learning about recent developments in their relationship. So he waited until Thea pulled her away under the guise of helping Raisa in the kitchen preparing some of the food they’d be nibbling on the rest of the day before he sat his parents down to talk.

“This is about more than just you and Felicity, isn’t it, son?” Robert asked. 

Oliver perched on the edge of his seat, learning forward so he could rest his elbows on his knees. “Yes, it is.”

“But you and Felicity are—? What’s happened, Oliver?” his mother asked. 

He ducked his head. “We’ve sort of realized there’s… an attraction there.” 

“So this means you and Laurel are through?”

“Yes. That’s why I came up here, actually. I had to get away. It wasn’t… good.”

His mother looked sympathetic as she reached over to pat his arm. “I’m not glad to hear that you’ve had an upsetting time with Laurel, but I’m glad you came here. We’ll always be here for you.”

“Yes, your mother is right. You’re always welcome here,” Robert agreed. 

“Well, about that… I thought we could talk.” 

“About what, honey?” Moira asked. 

“You want to move back to Starling,” his father said.It wasn’t a question and his mother looked sharply at him first and then at Oliver. 

“Is that true?”

“There’s nothing for me in San Francisco anymore. No where to live, no one to… there’s nothing. Just the job.”

“We could definitely use you at QC here,” Robert said. “That’s always been what I’ve wanted.”

“I know, Dad. And I appreciate it.”

“You can move in here,” his mother offered, sounding a little hopeful. 

Oliver cleared his throat and shifted back in his seat a little. “Actually, I was thinking maybe after I get settled I’d find a place of my own. Maybe closer to QC.”

His father grinned knowingly. “A young man wants a place of his own. Especially if he’s got an eye towards wooing a certain young lady?”

Moira turned to him, looking expectant. “So you and Felicity? You’re interested in her?”

“Is that okay? I know she’s Thea’s best friend and I think Thea is okay with it so long as I don’t hurt her. Earlier today she told me she’d kick me… some place uncomfortable… if I ever hurt her.” 

His father chuckled. “That sounds like Thea all right.”

“Oliver, Felicity is a very special young woman,” his mother said softly. “I would caution you against her if I thought you were being casual but… you aren’t, are you?” 

He shook his head.“No, not really. Maybe I’m too old for casual.”

“So what happened with Laurel then? You still haven’t told us.”His father looked expectant. 

Oliver had told Thea yesterday and his sister’s unmasked relief at the news had actually made him feel a little better about the whole situation. It made him feel like maybe he hadn’t made a mistake or lost the best thing in his life. He didn’t really believe that… but the niggling voice of doubt could creep up when he least expected it. 

His parents, on the other hand, had always liked Laurel. Where Thea had never connected with his girlfriend, his parents had and he knew they’d always expected him and Laurel to get married one day. So their reaction to learning how they broke up made him a little nervous. 

“A few days ago, she came home late from work. She was always home late. Or working on weekends. We hadn’t even had a chance to talk in a few days. I knew the law firm kept her busy but I could feel there was this distance between us and I tried to ignore it but after a while, I knew I had to say something,” Oliver began. 

“I was waiting for her and she didn’t want to talk but I pressed the issue. That’s when she told me she wasn’t in love with me. I was so surprised that I tried to argue with her and that lead to some shouting and then she told me she wanted to break up. She wanted me to move out.”

“Oh, Oliver,” his mother breathed, her forehead creased with sympathy. 

“I think maybe she might have met someone.At work. And that was why she was working late all the time,” Oliver admitted. His eyes slid over to his father who looked a little abashed. HIs father had done that, about ten years ago. His parents had nearly gotten divorced as a result. 

“So you two are over,” his dad said. “And you want a fresh start back at home.”

“Something like that,” he agreed. 

“Tell me Felicity isn’t just a rebound,” his mother said quietly. “Its none of my business, I understand that. But she’s become almost like family around here.This—whatever it is—happened awfully quickly.”

“I don’t know what it is, Mom. Moving back to Starling gives me a chance to find out.”

His parents both nodded and exchanged looks between them.Oliver relaxed his shoulders. He didn’t know if he had their approval but it felt like they at least understood where he was at.It was a start. 

“Okay, son.I go back to work on Monday. Why don’t you come with me, we’ll get you set up. I need a VP of Technology and you might be just the man for the job.”

Oliver raised an eyebrow at his father. “Does the VP of Technology work directly with the head of Applied Sciences?”

“As a matter of fact, they do.”Robert’s grin was wide and easy. 

“Remind me of QC’s policy on intra-company fraternization?”

“Well… HR handles it on a case by case basis. It depends on the circumstances, the positions of the people involved, any power imbalance… If you and Felicity are going to be dating, I would probably move her underneath Belinda Miles, the VP of Research and Development. That way she wouldn’t be directly reporting to you. You would still work together, but more as peers,” his father explained. 

Oliver nodded. “That makes sense. So it wouldn’t be a big deal?”

“Well, I would expect you two to act professionally,” his father told him, fixing him with a look. The word Oliver heard was “discretely”. As long as it was private (or near enough), then all was well. 

“Sounds doable,” Oliver said, smiling.His mother gave him a skeptical look but his father just grinned and shook his hand. 

His “plan” was definitely back on track. 

***

Felicity helped set out some serving platters while Thea transferred newly backed snacks and appetizers from cookie sheets. They were set up on the island while Raisa prepared some amazing looking deserts over on the counter near the sink.Felicity tried to avert her mind from what Oliver had done to her on that very island the night before. Thea hadn’t noticed, thankfully, talking to her about some guy she’d met at Tommy’s club the other night. 

“He was cute, like stepped right out of an Abercrombie catalog cute, but he also had an edge.Do you know what I mean?” Thea asked. 

“Mmhmm,” Felicity hummed in agreement. She was looking at the mottled marble of the island and remembering how cold it felt against her heated skin as Oliver—

“Felicity?”

“What?” she asked sharply, jerking her head up. 

“Where were you just then?” Thea asked. “Are you thinking schmoopy thoughts about my brother?”

Felicity made a face but a chuckle burbled up from her throat at the moony look Thea was currently giving her. Oh, if only she knew what thoughts Felicity was actually having. “Schmoopy” was about the furthest word she’d use to describe it. 

“Yeah, I guess I was,” Felicity replied, rather than tell his sister the full truth. 

Thea nudged her shoulder with hers. “So what happened last night with you two? There were all these sexually charged looks over dinner and watching that movie and then I wake up and you two are a… _thing_.”

“I thought you didn’t want to know the details.”

“I definitely don’t. I don’t mean _those_ details, anyhow. Did you two talk?Or was it all just…” She gestured with her hands making Felicity laugh again. 

“We did talk, a little. I was worried I was just a rebound thing for him but I think maybe… maybe he’s interested in more. I don’t know. We’ll have to see. Of course, if he goes back to San Francisco, that doesn’t leave a lot of opportunity for dating…”

“Unless he leaves San Francisco and comes back here,” Thea pointed out. 

“Do you think he might?” Felicity was legitimately afraid to hope. 

Her friend gave her one of her classic deadpan expressions. “He’s in the living room right now talking to Mom and Dad. I think its pretty clear what they’re discussing.”

“Him transferring up to QC here in Starling?”

“Yep.” Thea popped the ‘p’ as she transferred the last of the appetizers to the serving tray. 

Felicity tried to imagine it… running into Oliver at work, maybe taking lunch together. Going out to dinner. Going to QC events together. Spending weekends together, curled up on the sofa in her apartment, reading the paper and sipping at mugs of coffee. She wanted it so much, she was afraid to hope that she might get this chance with her. 

If the last day had shown her anything, it was that she could very easily fall head over heels in love with Oliver Queen. She was halfway there already. 

“Hey, fam!” a familiar voice called. Felicity and Thea looked up to see Tommy coming in through the side entrance located off the kitchen. He came over the Queens almost as much as Felicity did and generally just let himself inside. This morning, he looked bright and chipper and carried a large shopping bag filled with wrapped presents. 

“Tommy, you made it!” Thea cried, setting aside the cookie sheet and launching herself at their friend. Tommy dropped the bag and caught her easily, hugging her tight. 

“Of course I made it. I wasn’t going to sit all by myself on Christmas,” he replied, winking over Thea’s shoulder at Felicity. 

“Is your father out of town?” Felicity asked, coming over to get her own hug from Tommy when Thea finally released him. 

“No. It’s even worse; he’s at _work_ today.”

Tommy’s father, Malcolm Merlyn, was a notorious workaholic. Felicity knew it hurt her friend that his own father would rather work than spend time with him. But she also knew that Tommy hated when anyone made a big deal out of the best thing they could do was just welcome him to join them, which the Queens were always happy to do.Like Felicity, he was a defacto member of the family. 

“His loss, our gain,” Thea chirped. 

Tommy smiled at both of them. “So where’s my best buddy? I half expected him to be in here, sniffing around Felicity.”

Thea barked out a laugh. “Oh, if only you knew.”

Tommy looked at her quizzically and Felicity fought a blush. “He’s in talking with his parents.”

“Not anymore!” a voice from the doorway to the kitchen said. 

Oliver walked in and enveloped his best friend in a big hug that involved a lot of back clapping. “Good to see you, Tommy.” 

“You too, Ollie.”

They disengaged and Oliver gestured at the bag of gifts. “I see you brought offerings.”

“I did indeed.”

“Presents!” Thea cried. “Let’s get to it!” 

Tommy held up a hand. “Not so fast there, Short Round. I need at least one cup of coffee before I do anything else. And maybe one of those pastries that Raisa makes, I know they’ve gotta be around here somewhere.”

Raisa chuckled, appearing with said pastry in her hand. “For you, Mister Tommy,” she said. 

He took it, leaning forward to peck a kiss against the housekeeper’s cheek. “You’re the best, Raisa.”

Oliver cleared his throat and grabbed for Felicity’s hand. “While you’re having your breakfast, Felicity and I need to have a little talk. We’ll meet you down in the living room for Presents: Round 2?” 

Tommy nodded, chewing on a bite of pastry.He swallowed. “Fifteen minutes?”

Oliver glanced at Felicity and while this was all still very new between them, she could see what was unsaid in his look. He squeezed her hand. “Better make it thirty.” 

“Oh, gross,” Thea groaned. 

Tommy looked a charming mix of confused and amused as Oliver lead her out of the kitchen and towards the stairs. 

“Why are you dragging me upstairs?” Felicity asked as Oliver pulled her along the corridor towards his bedroom. 

“I wanted to talk,” he told her. 

***

“Why are you dragging me upstairs?” Felicity asked as Oliver pulled her along the corridor towards his bedroom. 

“I wanted to talk,” he told her.They arrived at his room and he opened the door, gesturing for her to enter ahead of him. He came in behind her and closed the door. 

“Okay what did you want to—“

Oliver cut her off by swooping down and capturing her lips at the same time as he grabbed her, yanking her against him. 

He kissed her as though he hadn’t in days… weeks. His obvious hunger only fed her arousal until she was practically climbing him like a tree. Oliver reached down for the hem of her skirt, dragging it up and then grabbing the waistband of her underwear. Instead of ripping them like had the night before, he shoved her underwear down and Felicity wriggled to assist their descent. Then, he hauled her up, encouraging her to wrap her legs around his waist. She didn’t need to be asked twice. 

Expecting him to carry her to the bed, Felicity was surprised when she felt the wall next to the door behind her a moment later.Her gasp was swallowed by Oliver as he continued to ravage her mouth.His hips moved fretfully against hers, the seam of his jeans and his hard cock behind that rubbed against her, making her tear her mouth from his and babble incoherently as he began to attack her neck.His scruff scratched her skin, his breath was hot, and his lips left a blazing trail wherever they went. 

“Reach into my pocket,” he told her, sounding strained. 

She did so and found a small foil package there and pulled it out. “Ahh, someone is prepared yet again.”

“I’m learning… with you, it’s a must,” he groaned. 

Felicity tore open the package and he took the condom from her. Reaching down to free his erection, she held herself up by pushing against his shoulders and he rolled the condom on.

“This… _guh_ … isn’t talking,” Felicity pointed out breathlessly as Oliver pinned her to the wall. 

“We’ll talk after,” he growled. 

_Ooh_. The caveman thing was kind of turning her on…

Moments later, the heck of his cock was rubbing through her folds, bumping against her clit and Felicity circled her hips while she held onto Oliver’s shoulders for dear life.“C’mon,” she urged.“Oliver, please.”

With a groan, Oliver aligned himself at her entrance and pushed in. Her body sucked him in and he filled her so perfectly that it brought tears to her eyes. How was this so _perfect_ with them?How did he fit with her so well? Could she ever let him go, after all of this? 

Oliver didn’t waste any time and began to thrust into her, pressing her back into the wood paneling of the wall of his bedroom. Felicity held onto his shoulders with one hand and with the other, she scrabbled for some sort of purchase, finally finding some against the doorframe next to them. She tried to stifle her cries as he pounded into her but it was a fruitless endeavor. Oliver was thrusting against a particularly sensitive spot inside of her… over and over and over again. He was grunting and moaning, her name tumbling from his lips as he trailed them over her neck. 

He fucked her hard and she _liked_ it. 

“Yes! Oh… Ohhhh, Oliver… God… yes!” she babbled, trying to move her hips but he had her pinned and everything was rubbing in just the right way… 

“Shit… oh, fuck… Felicity, you feel so… mmmfff.”The rest of what he said was muffled as he buried his face in her neck. His hips snapped relentlessly into hers and she could feel the familiar gathering low in her belly… her whole body was alight and the tension was growing… too much…

“Ahh!Oh, god! Oliver!” she cried just before her release snapped inside of her, letting go and washing over her with waves of pleasure. She could feel her body pulsating around his dick and Oliver groaned, loud and long before his hips stilled against hers. He held her in place as she felt his cock emptying inside of her. 

They both remained there for a long moment, her clinging to him and his face in her neck. They were both breathing hard and Felicity tightened her arms around him, holding him closer and he shuddered a little but didn’t move.Once her heart rate started to return to normal, she loosened her hold and he followed suit, gently sliding out of her and lowering her the floor. 

He pulled the condom off and stepped away to throw it in the waste basket in the bathroom.Felicity followed him and he handed her a washcloth when she joined him. He stepped out to give her a little privacy while she washed herself up.Then, she slipped her underwear back on, washed her hands and joined him back out in the bedroom. 

His jeans were pulled back up and buttoned and he sat on the sofa, looking rather sated and smug. He patted the seat next to him and Felicity obliged. 

“What got into you?” she asked with a grin. 

Oliver shrugged. “You did.I mean, ever since yesterday, I can’t stop thinking about you.And then I walked into the kitchen and I saw you there, with my friend and my family and you looked so natural there. So at home. I don’t know.It did something to me.”

Felicity leaned over and pressed a kiss to his lips, humming a little at how he lingered for a long a moment.“I can’t say that I’m complaining about what it did to you, considering how well I benefited from it.”

“We both did.”

“So what did you want to talk about? I’m assuming you actually do want to talk and coming up here wasn’t just some ruse to get in my pants again,” she teased. 

Oliver took her hand, rubbing his thumb over the skin of her knuckles. “I do want to talk. I wanted to tell you what I spoke to my parents about, actually.”

“Oh?”

“I mentioned to my father that I’d like to move back to Starling. And he thought it sounded like a good idea.He offered me a position as VP of Technology.”

Felicity felt the blood drain out of her face a little. “But… that’s my boss. Oliver, I can’t date my _boss_!” 

He smiled and leaned forward to peck at her lips. “We talked about that too.My father said he would reorganize your position so you report directly to Belinda Miles instead of me. To remove that conflict.We would still be working together, attending some of the same meetings and collaborating on projects, but as long as we can stay professional…”

Felicity stared at him, finally letting the hope that had been growing inside her heart to bloom. “Oh, my god. This is really happening, isn’t it?You’re moving to Starling?”

Oliver nodded.“Yes.And I’d like to start dating you, if that’s something you’re interested in.”

“Nah, I was just using you for your hot body,” she replied flippantly, making him growl and lunge forward to kiss her again. 

When he let her up a moment later, he was grinning from ear to ear. “I can’t wait to do that whenever I want to.”

“Not at work, buddy,” she told him, but she was still breathless from his kiss.Google help her, the man could kiss. 

“Unless I can find a private little spot,” Oliver said with a leer. 

Felicity just shook her head at him.“You’re incorrigible.”

“So, do you want to?Date, that is?”

She bit her lip and looked at him. He looked like a puppy, hopeful and trusting.Her heart banged in her chest and she knew… she was lost to this man already.“Of course I want to,” she said softly. “I think I’d go anywhere with you.”

Oliver smiled back and kissed her again.Softly this time.It was a kiss filled with promise and emotion that made her chest squeeze in the best sort of way.When he drew back, he reached up to tuck one of her errant curls behind her ear. 

“I think we should get back downstairs or else Thea will come back up here, demanding to know where we are and what we’re doing,” he said. 

Felicity made a face. “Yeah, we don’t want that.”

“Not again, at least.” 

She wrinkled her nose. “Don’t remind me.”

He stood up and pulled her up next to him. “One thing I learned at a young age is we don’t get between Thea and presents,” he told her with a wink. 

“Let’s not keep them waiting, then,” she said, linking her hands with his.Together, they walked out of his room and down to the living room where the rest of the family was assembled and waiting next to the twinkling Christmas tree. 

***

EPILOGUE - TWO MONTHS LATER

“Did you get them?” Oliver asked into his cell phone.He was hurrying along the sidewalk, dodging slower moving pedestrians and trying to balance his cell phone on one shoulder and his briefcase with his other hand. 

“I did. They just arrived, actually,” Felicity said over the line.“They’re beautiful.”

“Just like you,” he told her, meaning every word. 

They’d been practically inseparable since Christmas.Felicity had even flown down to San Francisco with him after the holiday to help him pack up his things and then drive back up to Starling.Luckily, they hadn’t run into Laurel while they were there.She’d made herself scarce when Oliver let them know they were coming. 

He definitely didn’t miss seeing her one last time. 

Still, being in their old apartment they used to share together was difficult. Oliver wasn’t sure he could have faced it without Felicity there, holding his hand and distracting him from the strangeness of it all. 

It took them barely two hours to pack up everything of his that he’d had with him for the past five years. Oliver thought that was a little depressing, that he didn’t have anything more to show for all that time. But Felicity, in that irrepressible way of hers, made him feel better by saying that it just meant he had an opportunity now to really settle in and make his home in Starling his own. 

That was another thing; when they returned to Starling, Oliver had gotten his own apartment. It was near Felicity’s but she thought it was important they not take that step until they got to know one another a little more. Oliver had to remind himself of that often with her. Because he’d known her for so long, it was easy to forget that he hadn’t really known her when they were both younger and there’d been many years he hadn’t seen her at all.It gave him something to hope for, to work towards. 

And they did spend a lot of time together anyhow.No sleepovers on weeknights was a rule that Felicity insisted on. Oliver didn’t agree with that one, but it was important to her that they remain professional so he went along with it. The weekends, however, were spent at her apartment or at his, sometimes never leaving (or getting dressed). 

It was bliss. 

“You didn’t have to send me roses. You’re such a charmer,” she murmured. “Are we doing anything tonight?”

“Its Valentine’s Day,” he replied, stepping around a lady walking a herd of dogs on leashes. 

“I know that, that’s why I asked.”

Oliver huffed a laugh. “I meant, its Valentine’s Day, of _course_ we’re doing something tonight,” he said. 

“Oh,” she said, sounding pleased. “What’d you have in mind?”

“I got us reservations at Table Salt.”

“Oh, wow! It’s almost impossible to get reservations there!”

“I know it. But I have an in with the owner. Do you want me to pick you up at your office or at your apartment?” he asked. 

“Hmm. I should change into something a little nicer if we’re going to Table Salt.How about my place? What time are the reservations?” 

“7 o’clock.I’ll pick you up at a quarter to?”

“I can’t wait. I have just the dress too. You haven’t seen it yet.It’ll blow your mind.”

“Felicity,” he groaned into the phone. It didn’t take much for her to blow his mind. She could do that wearing a potato sack.He wasn’t sure he could survive her making an effort to do so. 

“And then I was thinking we could come back to my place…”She trailed off and her meaning was clear.Oliver felt his heart speeding up. 

“But it’s a weeknight.You said no sleepovers.”

“I think I can make an exception for Valentine’s Day,” she purred into the phone and, shit, this was a really bad time to be getting a hard-on. 

“You’re a minx,” he growled, hoping no one around him heard him. 

“You love it,” she said in a sing-song. Oliver had to chuckle.She wasn’t wrong. 

“I’ll see you in five hours,” he told her. 

“Not soon enough.” 

God, how right she was. 

They hung up and Oliver slipped his phone into his overcoat pocket. He approached the boutique lingerie shop he was looking for, the one Thea recommended to him after he’d asked for suggestions. The face she’d made as she’d handed over the slip of paper with the address on it was just icing on the cake. He chuckled in remembrance as he pulled the door open. 

Since Felicity was lifting her ban on “weeknight sleepovers” for tonight, it made his idea of buying her something fancy and sexy even better.As he looked over the display racks, his mouth went dry. Picturing some of these lace and satin creations on Felicity’s amazing body was making him want to detour directly to her office. 

Except, of course, she had a ban on that too. 

Laurel never wanted him to buy her lingerie.She liked to pick out her own and said it was so she’d know she’d want to wear it. Oliver had asked Felicity, rather casually, the other week about how she felt about him buying her clothes, including lingerie. Her eyes had lit up and she’d told him she’d love that.So he was excited about this little Valentine’s gift idea of his. 

Things were great with them. His sister loved her, obviously.His parents also loved her.Tommy thought she was great (and teased him about her on a nearly daily basis). The sex was incredible and, besides that, Oliver genuinely loved to spend time with her.Whether they were watching movies on her sofa or going on a day trip or shopping together or ice skating down at the plaza… it all felt natural. And as difficult as it sometimes could be to keep his mind on business around her, working with her felt natural too. She had amazing ideas for Applied Sciences and she always made him feel like like his ideas were just as good. 

Felicity was just right. She was exactly what he’d been missing all these years and he hadn’t even known it. For years, things had been backsliding with Laurel and he hadn’t even seen it. He’d overlooked their growing issues because he thought being with Laurel was what he was expected to do with his life. Now, Oliver realized that if they hadn’t broken up that he would never have found out that Felicity was perfect for him. 

He was going to tell her he loved her tonight. 

“Hello,” a young saleslady said, walking up to him. “Can I help you find something?”

He smiled at her. “Yes, I think you probably can. I’m looking for something special for my girlfriend.”

Girlfriend. If he had his way, someday she would be his fiancee. And then his wife. 

“Certainly. Right this way, I will show you some of our more popular items.” 

Oliver followed the salesgirl, excited for everything that was to come in the months and years ahead. 

**Author's Note:**

> I'll try to post a chapter a day. There's four chapters, so it's not terribly long!


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